Raging Fire
by JoyfulHeartEO
Summary: PREVIOUSLY POSTED AS! "SAVE YOU"! What if Christopher reacted differently to the letter that Lorelai wrote for Luke in season 7? What if he did the one thing that could be unforgivable by everyone? Who will be there to save Lorelai? And even if they try to help, will she listen? Or will he fear and guilt over hurting Luke cloud her judgement?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**:** This is another story I wrote a long time ago that I found on my computer. It takes place when Christopher finds the letter that Lorelai wrote for Luke when he was trying to get joint custody of April. What if he had reacted much differently to the letter? Who would be able to save Lorelai? If you like the first chapter I will upload the rest. Someone may have written something like this, I haven't read a lot of GG fanfiction in a long time so I apologize if someone did. I've started to rewatch the show and I remembered I had this so I figured I would upload it. Anyway, like I said...if you like it I will upload the rest! Thanks! **

* * *

Lorelai stood in front of the stove stirring the pasta in the pot. Her body was going through with the actions but her mind seemed to be a million miles away. This wasn't anything new…it had been like this since she walked away from Luke outside his Diner on that terrible night in May.

Sighing, she tried to remind herself that this was the way her life was now. She was married to Christopher, he was her husband and she was his wife. It still felt strange to her, after all this time; after all they had been through to actually think they had actually gotten married. She had given up that dream a long time ago, and if she was being honest with herself it was the last thing she wanted. Sure, she wanted to be married but not to Christopher, she wanted to be Mrs. Lorelai Danes not Mrs. Lorelai Hayden.

But…everything had blown up in her face and she had made a choice that had changed her life forever. Now she just had to learn to accept it…there was obviously no going back now. When she heard the footsteps coming down the stairs she took a deep breath and once again she tried to force a smile on her face, the same thing she had been doing for months now.

"Hey, dinner's almost ready!" Lorelai called as she moved about the kitchen to try and find a strainer, "What do you want to drink?"

"What the hell is this?" Christopher's voice boomed through the kitchen causing her to jump and turn back to him.

"What is what?" She asked holding the strainer to her chest, her eyes fell down to the letter clutched tightly in his left hand. "Oh. That…" She took a deep breath and tried to take a step closer to him, "Chris I-"

"Why would you write this letter?" He asked closing the distance between them, "I mean Jesus Lorelai…" He looked down at the words again, "Once Luke Danes is in your life…he's in your life forever?" He looked back up at her menacingly, "How is that supposed to make me feel?"

"Chris I…I just…" She stepped back, feeling afraid of the anger that seemed to be bubbling up inside of her husband, "He was in trouble. He was going to lose April and I felt bad…I mean he already lost so much time with her and I didn't want him to lose anymore…"

"Why do you even care?" Chris yelled at her, "Why do you care Lorelai? You're with me now aren't you?"

She swallowed the lump that was growing in her throat, she had known Chris for a long time but she had never seen him this angry before. "Of course I'm with you…"

"Then why does it matter what happens to him?" He asked stepping all the way up to her again, he was just inches from her face, "Why does it matter?"

"I…I just…" Her hands started to shake when she realized she was backed up against the counter and had no way of getting away. "I wanted to help…he…he helped me a lot with Rory and-"

He rolled his eyes and started to pull away as he paced the room, "Oh here we go. Here comes the lecture about how perfect the Diner guy is who was there for all the stuff with Rory that I missed."

She shook her head as she placed the strainer down behind her, she grasped the counter top for strength, "I didn't mean it like that. I just felt like…I felt like I owed him…" She winced at her words when he turned back to her and closed the space between them again, "Chris I-"

"Do you still love him?" He asked glaring down at her with such anger, Lorelai felt every fiber of her body screaming at her to run but she knew she couldn't.

"Chris please-" She whispered softly as the tears started to fill her eyes.

"Do. You. Love. Him?" He ground out each word as he leaned in closer to her.

"I…" Her heart was pounding in her chest, she knew what the answer was but she couldn't tell him. "No. Of course not."

"Do you love me?" He asked leaning so close she could feel his hot, angry breath against her face.

She swallowed the lump in her throat again, "Of-o-of course I do. You're my husband."

Christopher snickered, "But he was supposed to be your husband first wasn't he?"

She bit her lip nervously, "Chris don't…"

He laughed bitterly and stepped back, "This is just great. This is fucking fabulous!"

"Please…" She whispered as she pushed herself away from the counter as she tried to reach for him, "Luke and I broke up, okay? It's over. I was just trying to help him with April. It didn't mean anything. We are together now. You and me. We're married."

He reared away from her hand, "But you wish it was him here don't you?"

Her heart was screaming yes but she adamantly shook her head, "Of course not!"

"You know…I've known you for a very long time Lorelai. You forget that I can read you like a book." He said stepping towards her again.

"Look let's just…let's forget about this okay? I promise after this letter I will not do anything for him. I won't even talk to him!" She yelled as she stepped back again bracing her hands behind her waiting to feel the counter dig into her back.

"And how the hell is that going to work Lorelai? We live in the same freaking town as the guy!" Chris yelled as he lifted the letter between them and glared down at her, "We have to stay in this fucking town because you won't leave and I know it's not because of the Inn! I know it's because you don't want to leave him. I'm not stupid."

She shook her head, "It is because of the Inn! And because this is where Rory grew up and-"

He laughed bitterly, "Rory's a big girl now Lorelai. She doesn't need to stay in the house she grew up in forever. She doesn't even live here!"

Lorelai gasped for a breath, trying to think of what she could say to calm him down. "Christopher please…please calm down. You're starting to scare me…"

He ignored her as he pushed her back against the counter, "She doesn't live here but I know she wishes it was Luke you married instead of me too. I'm her actual father and yet she still wishes that stupid Diner guy was here in this house. Do you know how that makes me feel Lorelai? Do you?"

"I'm…I'm sorry okay? Luke has been a big part of her life for a long time. I'm sure it is difficult for her to just cut him out the way she has had too. You can't be mad at her for that." She said trying to plead with him to understand.

"Who has it been harder for Lorelai, you or Rory?" He asked tauntingly, "How much do you miss him, huh?"

She flinched as she felt his right hand grab hold of her waist as he continued to push her against the counter, "Chris please stop…"

His lips were against her ear as he continued to yell at her and his hand dug harder into her hip making her gasp in surprise and fear, "Do you wish it was him who was here with you tonight? Do you wish it was him who was touching you when we make love? Is that it? Do you picture him when I'm inside of you?"

The tears were falling freely now and she tried to push him off of her but it was no use. "Stop. Please stop!"

"Answer me Lorelai!" He said shoving her back against the counter again making her shriek, "Do you wish it was him when I kiss you? Do you wish it was him holding you at night?" He asked as other hand crushed the letter against her other side. "You want him Lorelai? Not me?"

She could barely breath now she was so afraid, she wanted to run and get as far away from his as she could but she knew she couldn't fight him off. "Chris-" She chocked out as he continued to shove her back, digging the hard surface into her lower back. "You're hurting me. Please…please stop."

"I bet you are thinking your precious Luke would never do this aren't you?" He said pulling back just enough to look her in the eyes. "Is there anytime you aren't thinking of him?"

"Stop! I'm not thinking about anyone else! You're my husband!" She yelled hopefully as the tears spilled down her cheeks and onto her shirt.

Chris glared at her as he pulled all the way away finally letting her go, "Don't you forget that."

He lifted his hand and before she could even react his full hand came in contact with her face making her scream in pain. When he pulled it back he didn't even try and apologize when she lifted her own hand to try and soothe the stinging against her red cheek. He lifted his hands again and she jumped as he shoved her back and she knew her back would be bruised in the morning along with her face.

He shook his head and began to walk away, when she heard the front door slam behind him she slunk down the side of the counter as she continued to sob. She could hear the water bubbling over in the pasta pot but she couldn't lift herself up to take it off the stove. She felt sick and her whole body was on fire. She was so scared and lost in her own thoughts she didn't even hear the knock on the back door, she didn't hear the footsteps coming up beside her.

She jumped when she felt the hand on her shoulder, "Sugah?" The familiar voice of Babette whispered to her as she knelt down in front of her.

Lorelai turned her gaze to see Morey turning off the stove and picking up the pot before placing it in the sink. "B-b-babette?"

Babette kneeled down in front of her, "We heard yelling and we thought we would come see if you are okay…"

Lorelai's hand was still on her cheek as she whimpered, "I-I didn't-I-"

Babbette reached up and pulled her hand away, grimacing when she saw the large red handprint burning on Lorelai's cheek. "Oh sugah…"

The tears that had been falling quickly turned to loud and terrified sobs as she fell forward against her neighbor. Babette began to wrap her hands around her shoulders and rub her back trying to calm her. Lorelai was faintly aware of the sound of Morey's voice as he talked into her home phone. She couldn't pull herself out of her fear to understand what he was saying or whom he was talking too.

Her head was spinning and every part of her body and mind was searing in pain. How had this happened? How had it all gotten so screwed up? Never in her life did she think she would be the type of woman to be with a man who hit her. And she never would have thought Chris of all people could do that to her. Sure, they had been through some bad times but she had never, ever been afraid of him.

"Lorelai sweetie…" Babette whispered as she continued to hug her, "You should get up honey. Morey just called the police and they will be here soon."

Lorelai instantly sat up and began to pull her aching body up off of the floor. "No. No. No! Call them back. They can't come here!"

"Christopher assaulted you Lorelai…you can't just let him get away with it." Babette said as she stared at her in confusion.

"It was…it was just-" She was still trying to stop crying and her words came out in a rambling mess, she fell back against the counter again. "It was a misunderstanding. He didn't mean it…he won't do it again."

"Lorelai…" Babette whispered leaning towards her again, "Sweetie you can't-"

"I'm fine. I'm fine." Lorelai said as she walked on shaky legs as she walked around her, "Thanks for-for checking o-on me. I just n-n-need to go find Chris and fi-fi-fix this." She hiccupped as she walked away.

"You are in no condition to be going anywhere and you certainly aren't going to talk to him." Morey said trying to follow her down the hall.

Lorelai waved her hand back at them, "Just-just go. I'm fine. I swear I'm fine."

"But Lorelia-" Babette said scurrying after her.

"Please just go Babette, please." She stopped at the base of the stairs and quickly turned to look at her friends, "Please don't tell Rory."

"But Lorelai-" Morey tried to reason with her.

"Please." She said with more determination, "Please don't tell her. Just…call the cops tell him everything is fine and just go home. I'm okay." She said desperately trying to search both of their eyes, "Please…"

Something in Lorelai's tone of voice made Babette realize they weren't going to get anywhere with her. Sighing, she reached for Morey's arm and began to pull him back. "Okay sugah…whatever you want. We'll deal with the cops and I promise we won't call Rory…"

Morey turned to look at his wife, "Babette-"

She squeezed his arm, "You just call me if you need anything okay?"

Lorelai swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded, "Sure. Sure. Thanks again."

Babette waited until Lorelai turned and fled up the stairs to her bedroom before turning back to Morey. Then she began to pull him once again towards the back door and quickly exited the house.

"What was that?" Morey asked running after his wife. "We have to tell someone-"

Babette looked back at the house to make sure that Lorelai wasn't lingering anywhere to hear them before she looked at him again, "Of course we do. But if we push her she'll run Morey…did you see her face? Did you hear her voice? I've never heard Lorelai that scared…"

Morey sighed and walked up the steps with her back to their house, "So what do we do now?"

Babette sighed, glanced up at Lorelai's bedroom window and then ran into the house. She had a lot of phone calls to make…

* * *

An hour later, Babette and Morey were standing on the street far enough away from Lorelai's street as Miss Patty, Sookie and Jackson approached them.

"Where is she?" Sookie asked frantically trying to walk past them to Lorelai's house.

"Shhh…" Babette said grasping the woman's arm and pulling her towards her, "You can't go in there or she will freak."

"But she needs me! She needs someone!" Sookie yelled pointing back at the old white house.

"You know Lorelai…you know how stubborn and tough she tries to be. Well she's scared and she doesn't want to need people. She wants to deal with this on her own." Babette said.

Jackson sighed, "Have you seen Chris at all?"

Morey shook his head, "Not yet."

"Did you call Rory?" Miss Patty asked glancing around the street.

"She should be here soon. She was coming home anyway tonight." Babette said.

"Oh God…poor Rory…" Sookie said putting a hand over her mouth, "Does she know exactly what happened?"

Babette shook her head, "I was afraid to tell her over the phone. I didn't want her driving home if she was that upset. Plus I was afraid she would call Lorelai about it and I promised her I wouldn't do that."

"So what did you say?" Miss Patty asked.

"I told her I had gone over for a visit and saw that Lorelai wasn't feeling so great. I told her she was asleep so she shouldn't call her…" Babette said nervously.

"Do you even know what happened?" Jackson asked.

Morey shook his head, "We heard a lot of yelling…and she had a mark on her face…we couldn't see if he hit her anywhere else."

Sookie's lips started to tremble, "I just can't understand what would make Christopher do something like this. He was never my favorite guy…but I didn't think he would be capable of something like this."

Before anyone could say anything else, another car pulled up and they held their breath hoping it wasn't Christopher. But when Rory stepped out of the car, they sighed with at least some relief.

But for Rory, the sight of many of her neighbors and friends outside her mothers house, she began to wonder what exactly was going wrong. Her heart started to pound in her chest and she looked at her house before slamming her car door. She walked right past them until Sookie grabbed her arm.

"Rory wait…" Sookie whispered trying to pull her away from the house.

"What's going on? Where's my Mom?" Rory asked frantically trying desperately to get to the house.

"Oh Rory honey…I just…I don't know how to say this." Babette said starting to tear up.

"Say what?" Rory asked turning quickly towards her, "What happened? Where is she? Where's my Dad?"

"We don't know where he is…" Morey whispered.

"What do you mean you don't know where he is?" Rory asked looking between the people she considered to be her family. "What does that even mean?"

"We…we don't exactly know what happened." Babette started, "Its just…Morey and I heard some arguing coming from your house and…it kept getting louder so we went to go see if everything was alright…"

Babette's voice began to crack and she looked over at Morey unable to continue, "What happened?" Rory asked again desperately.

Morey put an arm around Babette and looked back at Rory, "Well…your mother she was crying, she was sitting on the floor and…"

"And?" Rory asked as she stepped closer to him, she was pretty sure her heart was about to leap from her chest.

"She had a handprint on her cheek Rory…" Morey said softly.

Rory let the words sink in; her head was spinning as they all stared nervously at her. "No. No he wouldn't do that."

"Rory…" Sookie said walking closer to her, "Sweets I can't even imagine what you must be feeling and thinking right now."

Rory shook her head, "My Dad is a lot of things but he's not the type of man who would abuse someone. And he definitely wouldn't hurt my mother…" She gulped for air before shaking her head again, "At least not like that…"

"She begged us not to call you and she made us call the cops and tell them not to come." Babette said softly.

Rory looked back at the house, she wanted to go in and hold her mother but she was afraid, "I don't understand…"

Sookie pulled her in for a hug, "It's going to be okay Rory. I promise we are going to figure this all out…"

"Why? Why would he do this?" Rory asked as she began to cry, clinging to her mothers best friend.

"What do we do if he comes back?" Miss Patty asked as she leaned into Jackson, "We can't let him back in that house…"

"I wish Lorelai would let the cops come over…they would know what to do." He answered back, "Should we call them again anyway?"

Rory pulled away from Sookie and shook her head, "She'll freak."

"Then what do we do? We can't just let him get away with this!" Miss Patty said anxiously.

Rory looked back at the house and took a deep breath, "There's only one person that she might listen too…"

Sookie looked at Rory and smiled sadly, "You mean Luke?"

Rory wiped her tears away, "I don't really have to ask what this was all about…I think we all know what probably happened."

"But Luke will freak out." Babette said nervously, "You know he'll go after Christopher…he loves her whether he'll admit it or not."

"Yeah he will go after my Dad…but not after checking on my Mom first." Rory said walking around them towards her car, "Stay here and make sure my Dad doesn't come back. If he does…" She took another nervous breath, "Call me."

Rory jumped in the car without looking back and sped towards the Diner. She wasn't even sure she had put the car in park fully before she swung the door open and ran into the Diner. It was a Sunday night and it looked like Luke was closing up early because there were no customers inside.

She could see him behind the counter wiping up and she began to quickly rap on the locked door. Luke looked up from where he stood and his heart dropped to his stomach when he spotted the young woman standing outside his Diner. God he had missed her, just like he had missed her mother but everything had gone so wrong so fast.

He was so consumed in his thoughts of regrets; he didn't notice the panicked look on her face. When she slammed her hand against the glass urgently he jumped into action and ran around the counter.

He reached for the doorknob and flung it open as fast as he could. "Rory-"

"I'm sure you hate my Mom for what she did." She said as she walked all the way into the Diner and began to pace, "I'll understand if you do. But you have to know she was hurting…she was afraid you didn't love her and-"

"Rory please…" Luke said as he sighed, closing the door behind her. "I don't think you should-"

"What she did was wrong…I know that. But I also know she is still hurting…I know she still loves you." Rory said as she stopped pacing and turned all the way to face him. "And I think you still love her…"

Luke stared at her for a moment, he had been worried something like this might happen, "Rory just because things with your Mother and I didn't work out…I don't want you to think I'm not here for you." He shrugged, "I don't want you to be afraid to ask me for help. I'm here for you. I always will be but-"

"That's why I'm here." Rory whispered nervously, "I need your help."

Luke tried to study her face to understand what she was about to say, "Well…what's wrong?"

"I…" Rory felt her lips tremble and her hands began to shake. "My Dad he…he..."

Panic started to bubble up in Luke's chest; he took a large step towards her and reached for the girl's hand. "What? What did he do?"

"I don't know all the details…all I know is he hit my Mom." She said quickly.

Luke didn't even let her say anything else; he turned on his heel and flew out the Diner door. He could hear Rory running behind him frantically but he couldn't seem to stop his feet as the pounded on the pavement. He was seeing red…nothing but red and he wanted to wrap his hands around Christopher's neck.

It wouldn't be the first time he felt this way towards that man but this was different. He had dared to raise a hand to Lorelai and he wanted blood. He didn't need to know what happened or why it happened, it didn't matter. All he needed was to get his hands on Christopher…but first he had to see her. He had to see her face, he had to know that she was going to be okay.

"Luke wait!" Rory yelled trying to keep up with him.

Since the distance between the Diner and Lorelai's house was so short, before she knew what was happening she could see everyone else standing outside the house. She looked at them frantically hoping someone could help but they knew no one would be able to stop him.

Jackson lunged trying to grab Luke but he tossed him aside. "Move!" He yelled.

"Luke wait!" Rory screamed at the man she had so long considered to be a father, "Please!"

At her words, Luke's whole body froze at the bottom of the porch steps. His heart was hammering away in his chest but the fear in the young girls voice scared him. He turned to look at her; he searched her face as she came to a quick stop in front of him, completely out of breath.

"Wait…" She said panting as the rest of their friends running up behind them.

"Rory…" Luke said stepping towards her, "I can't just-"

"I know!" Rory yelled, "I know. I want to run in there too. And I also want to kill my Dad for doing this…" She said as the warm tears fell down her cheeks. "But…she's…she's going to be scared…"

"Of me?" Luke asked leaning into her as he placed a hand on his chest, "I would never-"

Rory shook her head, "No! I know that. I know that."

"Then-" He started turning to go back up the steps to the house.

She grabbed his arm again, "Wait…"

Luke groaned and stepped back down to face her, "Rory-"

"We just…we have to think about this…" Rory whispered nervously looking back at Sookie for help, "You now how Mom can be…"

"She was insistent that we couldn't call the cops or Rory." Babette said trying to reason with him, "She might be very angry when she realized I didn't do what she asked me too…"

Rory nodded and turned back to Luke, "I just think…I think if you and I go in there calmly it will be better. If we run in there and bombard her she might break apart…"

Luke swallowed the lump that was growing in his throat, he rubbed a hand over his face trying to calm himself. "How the hell did we get like this?"

Rory took a step closer to him and put a hand on his arm, "I don't know…"

He shook his head as he felt the tears burning in his eyes, "I am so sorry Rory. I am so sorry…I let you down. I let you both down…"

Rory shook her head adamantly, "We can't…we can't do that right now okay? One thing at a time…I came to you because I knew you would protect my Mom. I knew you would protect us both…and I know your mad but I need your help with this one Luke…"

He nodded slowly, "I'm not going anywhere this time Rory…I promise."

She smiled at him as she turned back to the others, Sookie reached out and squeezed her arm letting her know they were right there too. Luke stepped up to the top step and waited for Rory to follow him, he let her walk all the way up to the door and unlock it.

It felt strange to walk back into the place he had hoped to be his home. His heart was doing flip flops, he felt confused and angry and he was trying to stay calm. It didn't matter what had happened between he and Lorelai anymore. None of it mattered, it didn't matter how hurt he was…all that mattered was that he made sure she was going to be okay.

They walked up the steps in silence before stopping outside Lorelai's bedroom door. Rory looked over at Luke and wondered what he was thinking, the would be walking back into the room he had renovated to share with her mother. The same room that she now slept in with her current husband, who just happened to be her father and also the one man who he hated the most. She couldn't imagine how much he hated her now that he knew what he had done tonight…

Luke gave her a quick not of encouragement, she took a deep breath and lifted her hand to knock. But she stopped when she heard the loud sobs coming from the other side of the door. She felt sick to her stomach and suddenly began to lose all her nerve.

The sound of Lorelai crying had always been the one noise that could cut him like a sharp knife. It felt like someone was ripping his heart out slowly as he listened to her cry. It was hard to keep his feet planted on the ground because he wanted to turn and run until he found Christopher.

When he heard Rory whimper beside him he knew he had to be strong for all of them. He cleared his throat nervously and lifted his own hand to knock on the door. They could hear Lorelai scrambling up off of the floor but it didn't sound like she was walking towards the door.

"C-C-Chris?" She managed to force out, "I-I just-Is that you?"

Rory cringed when she heard her mothers broken voice, "Mom…Mom it's me can I come in?"

They both heard the sharp intake of breath, "Oh Rory…I…honey I'm not feeling so great. You shouldn't come in here…I don't want to get you sick."

Rory reached up to wipe her tears away, "Mom…please open the door…"

"Really sweets…I'm good. I just…my stomach is all…I just I think…" She stammered out.

Rory looked at Luke frantically, unsure of what else to say to get her mother to let them in. "Lorelai…?" He said in a strong, soothing voice.

They were greeted but nothing but silence on the other side of the door. Luke worried his presence might only make things worse. He turned to Rory to say something but he was interrupted when he heard the door creak open slowly.

Both Luke and Rory turned quickly to see half of Lorelai's face staring out from the dark bedroom. "L-L-Luke?"

He tried to smile encouragingly at her, "Yes. It's me Lorelai…can you let us in?"

He watched her squeeze her eyes trying to hold in the tears, "You shouldn't be here Luke…you should go home."

Luke's heart ached at her words; he knew she was saying them out of fear. "Lorelai I'm not going to let anything happen to you okay?"

Her eyes shot open again and she stared desperately at him, she wanted to fling the door open and make him hold her. She wanted to erase the last few months, pretend none of them had happened. She wanted it to go back to the way it once was but she knew it could never happen…

Rory looked between her broken mother and then to Luke, "Mom…just open the door."

Lorelai's eyes turned towards her daughter again, she took a deep, shaky breath before she opened the door fully. She ignored the sharp intake of breath that Rory took at the sight of the growing bruise across her mothers face.

Luke felt like someone had punched him in the gut as he looked at her, tear marks ran down her face, her shirt was soaked and the imprint of Christopher's hand was still burning on her face.

"Lorelai…" He wasn't even sure if she could hear him because his voice cracked as he spoke, he couldn't hide the tears that were burning his eyes.

"Oh Mom…" Rory started to cry harder as she pushed past Luke and wrapped her Mom in her arms. "Mom I'm so sorry…"

Luke tried to ignore the fact that Lorelai seemed to wince as Rory wrapped her arms around her mother. He began to wonder just where else there might be bruises growing along her body. His blood began to boil again and the need to hunt down Christopher returned again. But when he noticed Lorelai staring desperately at him, he knew there was no where else he could go right now. He wasn't going to leave her side again…not until he knew exactly what happened.

But once he did…he made no promises that Christopher would end up unscathed. 

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**So what did you think? Do you want to know what happens next? Let me know and I'll upload the next chapter once I hear from some of you :) Thanks! **


	2. Chapter 2

**This story was previously called "Save You" but I changed the title to "Raging Fire" which is based off the song by Phillip Phillips. I'm glad so many of you are interested in the story and as I said before I already have the first few chapters written. I will update them once I get some more feedback and continue to write the story as soon as I can. I hope you continue to enjoy! **_  
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_Luke felt like someone had punched him in the gut as he looked at her, tear marks ran down her face, her shirt was soaked and the imprint of Christopher's hand was still burning on her face._

_"Lorelai…" He wasn't even sure if she could hear him because his voice cracked as he spoke, he couldn't hide the tears that were burning his eyes._

_"Oh Mom…" Rory started to cry harder as she pushed past Luke and wrapped her Mom in her arms. "Mom I'm so sorry…"_

_Luke tried to ignore the fact that Lorelai seemed to wince as Rory wrapped her arms around her mother. He began to wonder just where else there might be bruises growing along her body. His blood began to boil again and the need to hunt down Christopher returned again. But when he noticed Lorelai staring desperately at him, he knew there was no where else he could go right now. He wasn't going to leave her side again…not until he knew exactly what happened._

_But once he did…he made no promises that Christopher would end up unscathed._

_"Mom what happened?" Rory cried as she held her mother tight, "I don't understand…"_

Lorelai couldn't tear her eyes away from the man that was staring at her, "I'm okay…"

Rory shook her head against her mothers shoulder before pulling away, "No you aren't Mom. I can see that. Just tell me what happened and we'll-"

Lorelai pulled away from her daughter and tried to smile, "It was just a misunderstanding honey…"

"A misunderstanding?" Luke said as his eyes widened in shock, he stepped into the room ignoring the nervous look on Lorelai's face. "This wasn't a misunderstanding Lorelai. He put his hands on you. He dared to put his freaking hands on you!"

Lorelai stepped away and shook as he raised his voice, "I-I-please-please don't-"

Luke stopped walking towards her when he realized how afraid she was of him and his heart broke even more than it already was. He watched her step all the way back until she slammed into the wall before she slid down. Her body started to wrack with sobs again and he pushed past Rory to kneel down in front of her mother.

"Lorelai please look at me…" He whispered.

She had pulled her knees up against her chest, her arms were hugging them close as she buried her head in them. "It's all my fault. It's all my-my-my fault." She said as he body continued to shake.

Luke could feel Rory behind him but all he could focus on was this broken woman in front of him that he loved so much. "Jesus…" He let his knees crack as he put a gentle hand on her arm. "No. No Lorelai…this isn't your fault."

She stiffened for a moment as he touched her, but she relaxed when she knew he wouldn't hurt her. "It is. It's all my fault. All of it."

She refused to look at him and it hurt him more, he needed to see her eyes. He needed to see those blue eyes that always saw straight through to his soul. He needed to see them to know that she was going to be okay.

"Lorelai please…" He whispered softly to her, "Please just look at me…"

It took her a minute until she took a few unsteady breaths, she lifted her head and let her tear filled eyes look over his face. The first thing she noticed was that stupid black hat he had begun to wear after their break up. She hated everything about that hat, she wanted to see the blue one again.

She forced her eyes from the hat down to the stubble on his cheeks, the same stubble that used to tickle her as he kissed her. The same stubble that drove her crazy as he moved his lips down her body, nipping and nuzzling each part of skin he could reach. Her eyes scanned his lips and she wanted so desperately to kiss them to feel anything other than pain and fear that was erupting in her. But when her eyes finally moved up to those eyes of his, those eyes that read her like a book she melted and she let her legs slide down again, opening herself up to him.

"Luke…" She whispered softly. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for all of it…"

Luke shook his head and sighed, "That's not important right now Lorelai…"

She whimpered again, "But it is…it is Luke. Because if I hadn't of screwed it all up so badly none of this would have happened."

Luke licked his lips and turned from Lorelai back to Rory who stood nervously behind him. He watched the young girl nervously tap her foot as she held her arms tight around her middle. Her eyes looked from her mother to him and she nodded her head slowly back at him.

He sighed and turned back to Lorelai, he didn't want to have this conversation. He wasn't ready, and he definitely didn't want to have it in front of Rory. However, he knew that right now he had no choice if he had any chance of helping Lorelai…

"Lorelai it took me awhile to see it…but I realize now I pushed you to him." He swallowed hard and shook his head, "If it's anyone's fault that this happened…its mine."

Lorelai lifted her hand and wiped her tears away but winced when she touched the sore flesh of her cheek. "I was so scared…"

He sighed and reached up to pull her hand back to examine the mark on her face, "What happened?"

She licked her lips nervously and sighed, "He…he found the letter."

Luke's eyes went from mark on her face to her eyes, she could see the desperation there and she hated herself all over again. He felt sick to his stomach thinking this had happened because of him…

When Luke did respond to her mother's words, Rory stepped closer to them and spoke up, "What letter?"

Lorelai didn't take her eyes off of Luke, he sighed and turned back to Rory. "April's mother is trying to take her away. Your Mom wrote a letter to the court to help me get joint custody…" He shook his head and turned back to Lorelai. "I am so sorry…" He whispered feeling the pain bubble up in his chest. "God Lorelai I'm so sorry…"

"What happened?" Rory asked crouching down, she didn't want to intrude on their space but she needed to be closer to her mother,

The room was dark, Rory put her hand on her mothers shoulder encouragingly and waited. Lorelai sat in silence for a moment, trying to relish in the feeling of safety that these two people caused her. All she had ever wanted was to be with the two of them, but not like this…

She sighed and closed her eyes, resting her head back against the wall. "I was cooking dinner…and he came downstairs. He just…he started asking me about the letter. He was so mad…" She said as she tried to keep the tears in. "He just kept yelling at me and I didn't know what to do…I tried to calm him down. I have never seen him that angry…but I didn't think…"

Rory rubbed her mothers shoulder gently to try and soothe her, she glanced at Luke out of the corner of her eye and noticed just how tense he was. "It's okay Mom…keep going."

Lorelai swallowed hard again, "He just kept asking if I was in love with…if I was in love with…" She sighed and opened her eyes for a moment to look at Luke. "If I was in love with you or him…"

Luke inhaled sharply and just nodded his head to encourage her to keep talking. He didn't need her to answer that question right now…he didn't think he could handle the answer. No matter what the answer was…

"He pushed me against the counter and I couldn't get away…I tried to calm him down." She said as she closed her eyes again, to afraid to look at Luke. "I begged him to stop because he was scaring me but his hands were so tight around me. I couldn't get away…"

Rory wiped more of her tears away and she leaned in closer, "Mom…"

"And then he asked if I wanted…if I wanted him or you to be there and…then before I knew what was happening he hit me." Lorelai whispered softly. "And then he was gone…"

"God Mom…I can't believe he would do this…" Rory said shaking her head as she leaned it against her shoulder. "I just can't believe he did this…"

Lorelai sighed and leaned against her daughter, "It's my fault."

"No it isn't." Rory said lifting her head to look back up at him, "Mom…no matter what might have been happening…no matter what you may or may not feel he had no right to do this to you."

Lorelai licked her chapped lips and looked straight at Luke, "I hurt you both. I did this…I caused this and I can't even be mad at him for it."

Luke shook his head quickly, "No. You didn't. Rory's right. It doesn't matter Lorelai…none of it matters. He had no right to lay a hand on you…no matter how angry or hurt I was or might be…I'd never do this to you."

She sighed sadly, "I know…"

Rory watched for a moment as her mother and Luke stared at one another. Her heart ached for both of them and for what could have been if things had been different. But as she watched them she also knew that Luke would do anything for his mother…even now after everything that had happened. She knew he wasn't going anywhere…and her fear began to subside because she knew he would find a way to fix this just like he had always done.

"Mom…" Rory whispered afraid to break their connection, "Mom you need to talk to the police."

Rory watched as her mother flinched at her daughter's words and she quickly lifted herself up off the ground to move away from them. "No."

Rory looked back at Luke desperately but he was watching Lorelai as she moved out of the bedroom and into the hallway. He jumped up quickly and followed her making sure to keep an appropriate distance as to not crowd or scare her.

"Lorelai, Rory is right. You need to call the cops so that he can't come back here and do this again." Luke said trying to reason with her as he followed her down the stairs.

Lorelai walked from the stairs to the kitchen to look at the mess she had left there, "No. I won't. I won't do it. And he won't do it again. I know he won't."

Luke looked back in time to see Rory now standing behind him as they watched Lorelai take the dried out pasta out of the sink and walk towards the trash. "You don't know that…" He said softly.

Lorelai shook her head as she continued to walk around the kitchen, unable to look at them again. "He didn't mean to do it. I know he didn't. It will all be fine. When he comes back we'll talk about it and it will be done."

Rory stared in shock at her mothers words, she had never thought her mother would act this way in such a situation. "Mom you can't be serious. You can't actually think that you guys will get back together now."

"Rory you don't understand…" Lorelai said with a sigh as she moved nervously around the room, "It's complicated okay? Sometimes when you are an adult you just have to make sacrifices and-"

"Sacrifices?" Rory scoffed in disbelief as she stepped around Luke to reach her Mother. "Are you kidding me? Mom do you even hear yourself right now? This isn't you!"

Lorelai jumped at the loudness of her daughters voice, "I can't just walk away."

Rory stepped all the way up to her, "Why not Mom? We both know you don't even love him."

Lorelai felt the stab to her heart and she quickly glanced at Luke who seemed frozen in his spot behind Rory. "I do love him. I do-"

Rory shook her head, "No. You don't. And stop trying to force yourself to feel something you don't."

Lorelai could feel her lip starting to tremble again and she shook her head, willing herself not to cry. Rory sighed and put a hand on her mothers arm to try and soothe her.

"Mom listen to me…" Lorelai lifted her head slowly to look at her daughter, "When are you going to stop punishing yourself?"

Lorelai couldn't hold the tears in anymore and she began to fall apart. Rory looked back at Luke hopefully and he stepped in just as she knew he would, just as he always had.

"Rory, why don't you give your Mom and I a minute?" He whispered to her.

Rory looked at her Mother who was falling apart in front of her, she nodded slowly and then stepped away back towards the front door. Luke waited until he heard the door close behind her before he approached Lorelai all the way. She was crying hard again and he felt his broken heart beginning to rip apart even more.

"Lorelai listen to me…" He whispered, trying to sound stern but also trying not to frighten her, when she lifted her head he continued. "I need you to call the police and fill out a report about this."

Lorelai shook her head, "I can't."

He sighed and reached for her gently, his thumb began to rub soothing circles on her upper arm just as he always had done when she was upset. "Yes you can."

She stared at him for a moment before responding, "I deserved this."

Luke stood up straighter and felt his heart begin to pound again, he shook his head and led her over to the kitchen chair. When she finally gave in and sat down in the chair closest to her and pushed himself as close to her as he could get. She was staring down at her hands in her lap and he quickly reached for them, he felt her squeeze them back in response.

"You did NOT deserve this." Luke said as he bent her head towards her. "No one ever deserves something like this. But you of all people don't deserve this. Okay?"

She lifted her head and shook it, determined to make him understand. "But Luke I made him think I wanted him…but all I wanted was you. I hurt him just like I hurt you and I hate myself for that."

Luke sighed again, "Lorelai, Christopher is a grown man he could have made different decisions too. I don't know what happened that night when you went to him…" He closed his eyes, obviously in pain. "And quite honestly I don't want to know what happened but he had to have known you weren't in any state to make clear decisions."

"Luke I was just so…I was so hurt and so angry." She managed to get the words out despite the trembling of her voice. "And I needed to do the one thing I knew you could never forgive me for. I needed to make sure you wouldn't come back to me…"

Luke squinted trying to understand what she was saying, "Why?"

She wiped away more of her tears and hissed when she felt the bruise against her skin again, "Because it all hurt to much…you kept pushing me away and I was holding on for dear life. And then you…you just said no. You said you didn't want to get married and I-"

He shook his head, "I never said I didn't want to get married Lorelai. Never. I just couldn't run off like that."

"But why?" She asked pleading with him. "Why not? Didn't you love me?"

He squeezed her hand gently, "Of course I loved you." He paused when he saw the pain grow on her face. "I do love you…"

"Then why?" Lorelai pleaded again, "Why couldn't you marry me Luke? What did I do? Please tell me what I did to make you not want me anymore…"

"You didn't do anything." Luke said feeling confused by her words, "Lorelai I never stopped wanting you…"

"Yes you did." She said as she gasped for air as the tears continued to spill down her cheeks. "At least that's what it felt like…" She sniffled and closed her eyes tightly, "Before April I felt it…I always felt it…"

"Felt what?" Luke asked desperately trying to understand what she was saying.

"I felt that you loved me…" She whispered before opening her eyes, "With just a look or a simple touch I could feel it…I knew it. I was sure of it. I was sure of you." She said sadly, "But then April showed up and you just pushed me away…and I felt like I was just a burden to you then."

He sighed and scooted even closer to her, "You weren't a burden Lorelai. I was just so damn confused…I had all these emotions…all these feelings and questions and I didn't know how to deal with them."

"Well why didn't you just ask me for help?" She asked as she reached for him desperately. "You didn't need to do it all alone. I was there Luke…I was right there and I tried to help but you kept getting so mad…"

He nodded, "I know. I know. I just…I was angry at Anna for keeping her from me. And I didn't know how to let her into my life and I wanted to figure out how to deal with her before bringing her into our life. I needed to do that alone first…"

"But…I could have helped you. It's not like I didn't understand having a kid…and God Luke you helped me so much with Rory. I never would have been able to do it all without you…I wanted so badly to help you too." She whispered sadly as she reached a hand up to cup his face. "I wanted to help you…"

He nodded as he leaned into her touch, the same touch he had missed and craved for months. "I know you did. I know…I'm so sorry Lorelai. I just got so damn screwed up and I didn't even see you slipping away…"

She let out a shaky breath before continuing, "When you let me walk away that night…" She shook her head sadly; "I felt like someone had ripped out my heart…I've felt so hollow since then. So alone…"

Luke grimaced her words and reached for her hand on his face and put it back against his leg to hold it once more. "I didn't realize that if I let you go I'd lose you forever…"

"I tried so hard to love him." She whispered never taking her eyes off of him, "He was so sweet…I kept telling myself we would be a family. The family that Rory had always deserved…" She laughed bitterly, "But I was so wrong…"

"You can't force yourself to love someone you don't really love." He said before laughing sadly, "Just like you can't force yourself to stop loving someone you really love...believe me I tried…"

"I felt like if I couldn't have it all with you I had to just take what I could get…I didn't want to be alone anymore." She said hoping he would understand.

"I just hated that it was him…" He whispered sadly looking down at their joined hands, "I think I could have gotten over it if it was someone else…I would have been hurt but not like that. That was to much…"

"I know…" She whispered, "That's why I did it? I needed you to let go forever."

He lifted his head to look at her again, "I could never let go forever Lorelai…you have to know that by now." He scooted forward in his seat and pulled out his wallet, Lorelai watched in fascination as he pulled the worn out horoscope from its pocket again just like he had done on their very first date. "After you told me what happened…" He paused and ran his fingers over the faded paper, "And after I hit Christopher…" He sighed and handed it to her, "I went home and I lit a match to burn this but I couldn't…" He watched her eyes searching his hopefully, "I couldn't do it Lorelai…I couldn't let go…"

"Luke…" She whispered as her free hand reached for him again.

"I can't walk away again Lorelai and I won't. I never should have walked away the first time but I did. And I have kicked myself every day since then…" He sighed and took the horoscope back before putting it back in his wallet and throwing it on the table. "I don't know what the hell is going to happen or how we will ever get over all that stuff but none of it matters right now."

"Yes it does…" She said with a sniffle. "Of course it does."

He nodded his head, "It does but there are more important things we need to deal with right now."

Lorelai knew what he was referring too, she leaned back in her chair, pulling away from him as she wrapped her arms around herself suddenly feeling cold. "I'm scared…"

"I'm not going to let anything happen to you Lorelai…" He said with such honesty and confidence she felt like the million broken pieces of her heart were all melting into him again. "He will not lay another finger on you…"

Despite all the pain and the confusion, she knew that he meant what he said. Taking a deep breath she moved her feet so that she could stand up again. He looked up at her, the light reflected off the bruise still growing darker against her cheek.

"Okay…I'll do it." She spoke in such a soft voice he wasn't even sure he had heart her correctly.

After a moment he finally stood up to face her again, he reached out to smooth her hair away from her face. "Okay…"

She tried to smile but seemed to fail miserably, she didn't want to cry in front of him anymore than she already had. She turned slowly and began to walk towards the front door to find her daughter, Luke was right behind her giving her the strength she needed. At first she was shocked to see all the people sitting out on her front porch but then she smiled realizing just how loved she actually was.

Rory quickly stepped up to her mother and reached out to her, "Mom?"

"I'm so sorry to put you through this kid…" She whispered as her voice cracked and gave her away. "I'm so sorry."

Rory shook her head and pulled her in for a hug, "Don't you apologize Mom. It's going to be okay. You're going to be okay…we'll get through this just like we've gotten through everything else."

Lorelai nodded against her daughters shoulder before she pulled away to face her other friends, her eyes fell on Babette and Morey first. "Babette I-"

The older woman stepped closer to her, "I know I broke my promise Sugah but I just couldn't-"

Lorelai shook her head, "It's okay. I'm glad you called her…" She looked around the porch and let out a sad laugh, "And everyone else."

"I just hated to see you that way…" Babette said honestly as she reached for her hand.

Lorelai nodded in agreement, "It's okay. Really…I'm so grateful that you and Morey came to check on me."

Sookie stepped up to her best friend, "Oh honey…are you okay?"

Lorelai took a deep breath, "Uh no…" She laughed again but looked back at her daughter who had moved to stand beside Luke in the doorway, "But…I will be."

Rory smiled encouragingly at her Mother, "Are you going to call the police?"

Lorelai sighed and walked back over to her, taking her hand in hers. "Yes. I know I have too."

"It's the only way to make sure that he can't hurt you again." Sookie whispered sadly.

Lorelai nodded and glanced over at her, "I know…"

"Look Sweetie…" Miss Patty said as she made her way over to Lorelai, "I've been in a similar situation myself…"

Lorelai swallowed hard, "Which husband?"

Miss Patty shook her head and tried to smile, "Doesn't matter. All that matters is that you need to take a stand to protect yourself and your daughter." She said as she glanced over to Rory sympathetically. "Show him he doesn't have the power to hurt you like that…show him how strong you are."

Lorelai smiled at her and nodded nervously, "Okay…"

"Anything you need…we're here for you." The older woman told her, "Even if you just need someone to talk to you know where to find me…"

Lorelai felt her eyes begin to burn with tears again as she leaned forward to hug her, "God I'm so lucky to have you all in my life…"

Babette smiled at her neighbor and best friend, "It's the beauty of living in a small town sugah, everyone knows everyone's business so everyone makes sure to help them through all the bullshit…"

Everyone laughed softly in agreement, "Is there anything else we can do right now?" Jackson asked Lorelai and Rory.

Lorelai shook her head, "No…no you should all go home. It's getting late. Rory's here with me…we'll figure it out."

Luke stood up straighter and placed a nervous hand on her upper arm, "I'm not leaving you here."

Lorelai quickly glanced back over at him and smiled when she saw the love and concern in his eyes, "Luke really you've done enough…I can't ask you to stay any longer. The cops will be here soon and they will protect us-"

He shook his head adamantly, "It doesn't matter. I'm not leaving."

"But Luke-" She tried to reason with him.

He stepped, as close to her as he could and bent down to make sure they were at eye level. He noticed how she swallowed hard and wondered if she was afraid of him like she was afraid of Christopher. Pushing the thought aside, he whispered so that only she and Rory could hear him.

"I let you go once Lorelai. I'm not going to do it again." His voice was so clear and honest she wanted nothing more than to fall into his arms and let him hold her until this terrible nightmare ended.

However she knew they still had a long way to go before they could be at that place again, "Luke…" She whispered with trembling words.

"I'm going to make sure he never hurts you again." Luke said searching her eyes before looking over at Rory. "You either Rory…"

Rory smiled at the man she had long ago come to love as a father figure in her life, "I know you will…"

Luke let the corners of his mouth curve up in a smile just slightly before he turned back to Lorelai, "So…can I stay now?" When he saw her begin to protest again he rolled his eyes playfully, "Even if you say no we both know I'll sit out on this porch until I know you are safe. Did you forget how stubborn I am?"

Lorelai laughed, the first real laugh she had produced in months and shook her head. "I didn't forget…"

He stood up straight again and nodded as he looked down at her, "Good. Then you know your options. Let me in and stay or make me suffer out here in the cold. And just so you know I forgot my coat back at the Diner…I was in kind of a rush."

Lorelai shook her head as she smiled. "Whatever you say Burger Boy…"

He couldn't help but smile back at her words, he watched Rory step closer to her mother encouragingly. Lorelai turned to the rest of her friends and gave them all hugs and thanked them for all they had done. After promising over and over to call if she needed absolutely anything, they finally all left the porch, even Sookie who had to be dragged by Jackson.

When they were all out of reach, Rory put an arm around her mother and cocked her head towards the house. "Come on…lets get you inside." She glanced at the black and blue bruise on her mothers face and sighed, "We should put something on that…"

Luke stepped aside to let them in first before he shut the door behind them and followed them towards the kitchen. "You have a steak or anything? That's usually the best thing to put on a bruise. That's what I did when I was a kid…"

Lorelai let Rory lead her over to the kitchen table to sit down again before she scoffed at him, "Get in a lot of fights as a kid Butch?"

He glared at her making Rory laugh as she sat down beside her Mother. "No. Got a few baseballs thrown at my face before I got the hang of actually catching them." He said as he opened the freezer to try and find one.

Lorelai shrugged, "Oh I just figured you were the tough guy on campus always fighting for some girls dignity."

Luke chuckled but didn't turn to look at her, "You're nuts."

Lorelai sighed and rested her unhurt cheek against her hand suddenly feeling tired. "I don't think there is any steak in there…I've been eating out mostly. You know I don't cook."

Luke grunted, "Really? I always thought you were a regular Martha Stuart."

She squinted her eyes at him, "Watch it Danes."

He laughed again as he took a bag of frozen peas out of the freezer and held them out to her to take. "These will do."

Rory, who had been enjoying the playful banter going on between her Mother and Luke scoffed when she saw the peas. "Since when do we have peas in this house?"

Lorelai shrugged, "We always had peas in the freezer."

Rory leaned forward and glared at her Mother, "Mom the only vegtable we have ever had in this house was potatoes and they came in the form of tater tots or French fries."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." Lorelai she said rolling her eyes as she lifted the peas to her cheek, as soon as they made contact with her burning skin she winced, "I hate peas."

Rory laughed again at her mother, "Then why were they in the freezer?"

Lorelai let her gaze fall down to stare at her knees, she knew her other cheek was now red and it had nothing to do with being hit. Rory seemed to understand what her Mom couldn't say as she glanced back at Luke who couldn't seem to take his eyes off of Lorelai.

"Oh…" She whispered before clearing her throat, she tried to think of someway to break the awkward tension. "Do frozen peas go bad?"

Lorelai's head snapped up as she squinted at her daughter, "I don't know. But does it really matter if your purpose for using them is purely medical rather than for nutritional value?"

Rory laughed again, "I guess not…"

Luke smiled at the two of them before shaking his head, he knew the peas were left over from when they had still been together. It seemed like such a simple thing but for some reason it warmed his heart. However, he didn't want to make Lorelai uncomfortable at the moment, she already had enough on her plate. She didn't need to add peas to it…

He took a deep breath and stepped back, "I should…call the police. The sooner they come over the sooner we can fill out a report and make sure that Christopher can't come back here."

Lorelai lifted her head to look at him as she still held the peas to her face, "Okay…"

He smiled encouragingly down at her before placing his big strong hand on her shoulder, he gave it a gentle squeeze before talking again. "Everything will be okay Lorelai. I promise."

As she looked up at him, she knew his words applied to more than just the situation with Christopher. She knew he meant that someway or other they were going to be okay…she trusted him to find a way.

Without saying a word, she just nodded her head, which gave him the strength to walk away to reach for the phone. When the girls were alone in the kitchen again, Rory waited until she heard Luke's voice signaling he was now talking to the 911 operator.

Leaning forward, she squeezed her mother's knee gently as she smiled lovingly at her. "You kept his peas?"

Lorelai smiled back weakly and let her gaze travel down the hall to stare at Luke's back as he continued to speak to the person on the other end. "Yeah…I kept his peas…"

Despite everything that had happened tonight and how scared she had been…she knew that no matter what Luke would keep her safe. She couldn't believe that she was in this situation, no matter how bad things had ever been in her life she never expected to be here. But through the pain she had a feeling she was somehow going to find her way back to the place she truly belonged…even if it meant she had to start eating peas again…

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**So what did you think? I hope you liked it. Let me know and I will post the next chapter as soon as I can! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys, I'm so many of you are liking the story! I will try and keep the updates coming as quickly as I can. The next two days for me are pretty hectic but I will do my best to update tomorrow! Keep the reviews coming and it will motivate me to update quicker ;) **

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An hour later, the cops had been called and had come by the house to talk to Lorelai. With Luke and Rory at her side, Lorelai was able to tell the officers exactly what had happened. Whenever she began to get chocked up again, the reassuring hand of either her daughter or the man beside her gave her the strength to keep going.

Once they finished talking, they explained to Lorelai that they would be putting out a warrant for Christopher's arrest. She seemed hesitant and unsure about what would happen next and how she would be able to keep him from coming back for her. She knew he had to show his face eventually…

After talking with Luke for awhile, they agreed that at least one officer would park outside the house for the night to see if he did come back. Luke explained that he too would be staying there in order to keep an eye on Lorelai and Rory. Once everything had been settled, at least for the night the officers walked out of the house. By now it was almost midnight and Lorelai looked like she was ready to pass out.

Rory walked her into the living room and rubbed her back gently, "We should get you upstairs and into bed…"

Lorelai winced at the idea, "No."

"Mom you really need some sleep. You've had a terrible night…staying up isn't going to make you feel any better." Rory said trying to reason with her.

Lorelai shook her head again and whispered sadly, "I can't go up there…"

Rory looked back at Luke who looked so broken once more witnessing the love of his life in so much pain. She nodded her head and began to steer her mother towards her old bedroom. "Well then you can sleep in here with me okay? I wasn't going to let you sleep alone anyway…"

Lorelai nodded slowly as her daughter led her to the small room. She didn't fight it as Rory pulled back the covers and let her mother crawl in. It felt strange that the roles were now reversed. How many times had Lorelai tucked Rory into bed at night? How many times had she soothed her to sleep after a terrible nightmare? It was ironic how things had changed…

Sighing, she rested her head on the pillow and let her eyes begin to close. "I am pretty tired…"

Rory smiled and curled up next to her Mother, she could feel Luke watching them from the kitchen but knew he wasn't about to intrude right now. "You get some rest Mom." She wrapped her arm behind Lorelai's head and began to stroke her hair gently, "Luke and I are not going anywhere, okay?"

Lorelai let her head nod gently against the soft pillow. "Okay…"

Rory leaned down and kissed her forehead, "I love you Mom…"

Lorelai managed a small smile back at her daughter as she began to drift off to sleep. "I love you too kid…"

Rory smiled and leaned down to rest her head against her mothers. She wanted to make sure she was fully asleep before getting up again. She could hear Luke quietly backing away from the room and at first she wondered where he would go. But she smiled against her mothers hair when she heard him rummaging around in the kitchen cleaning up the mess that had still been untouched.

It amazed her that after everything that had happened in the last year he was still here tonight. She knew she shouldn't be shocked…Luke had always been around when they needed him. He had been there to fix all the broken porch railings, replace the light bulbs, fix the oven and refrigerator. He had been there when she had the chicken pox and Lorelai had been worried out of her mind because she couldn't get her to eat anything.

He had been there when she had broken her arm after the car accident with Jess…she remembered how he snuck in one afternoon when he knew Lorelai was gone. She remembered how she had almost been asleep when she heard him walk quietly into her room. She had sat up and looked at her, nervous that she would be angry to see him. But when she smiled up at him he had knelt down beside the bed and sighed as he placed a bag of food on her nightstand. He had asked if she was okay and told her that if she needed anything to call him right away. And just as quickly as he had come he was gone again…but it didn't matter…he had still been there.

And he was here now despite the fact that things had blown up so badly between he and her Mother. She had thought about going to see him, going to talk to him about what really happened. It felt strange because she knew that she should feel happy that her parents were finally together. Every kid wanted their Mom and Dad to be married didn't they? She knew she had wanted that once…a long time ago but as she grew older she understood it was never meant to be and she had come to terms with it.

And then she had begun to look at Luke in a different way, he changed from their Diner friend who grudgingly served them coffee and burgers to something more. She had thought about what it would be like if her Mom and Luke finally got together someday but she never let herself get her hopes up. But then they finally did find their way to each other…and she had never seen her mother so happy. For the first time in her life Rory had felt like she could finally let go a little because she trusted Luke to take care of her now that she had her own adult life.

But then things went bad and she had had to watch her mother crumble in front of her. At first she had thought they could find a way to make it work, but when her Mom confided in her that she had slept with her Father Rory knew it was over. It had to be over…Luke could never forgive Lorelai for that.

And yet here he was, once again rummaging around in their kitchen fixing things just as he had done for so many years. It amazed her how selfless he could be, he was so different than her own father. She knew now that there had been more to the troubled relationship than her Mother cheating and she had her own anger towards Luke for his part in it.

But right now…it didn't seem to matter. All she needed to know was that he was here where he belonged, where he had always belonged. He was here and he was going to protect both of them through whatever else might happen. Taking a deep breath, Rory glanced down at her Mom to make sure that she was actually asleep. She smiled to herself when she saw and heard the steady breathing, she knew she had finally given in and let herself rest.

Quietly, Rory detached herself from her Mother before tip-toeing out to the kitchen to face Luke. He didn't hear her at first; he was to focused on cleaning and to caught up in his own thoughts. But after a moment he seemed to sense her standing behind him, he placed the now clean pot down on the sink to dry before he turned to stare at the young woman before him he would always picture as the little girl who begged him to bury a dead caterpillar for her.

It amazed him how grown up she looked, he wondered how much she had changed in the last few months. How much had he missed in her amazing life? He hated that he didn't know what was going on for her now. But he hated more that she was hurting and there wasn't really anything he could do to make it go away.

"She asleep?" Luke asked nodding his head towards the bedroom as he reached for a towel to dry his hands.

Rory nodded before turning back to shut the door softly so they wouldn't disturb her, "Yeah…she pretty much passed right out."

Luke leaned against the counter and pursed his lips, "She must be exhausted…"

"Yeah…she must be…" Rory whispered as she dragged herself over to the kitchen chair again.

Luke studied her for a moment and watched as her shoulders seemed to sag, "You must be tired too. Why don't you go back in there and get some sleep? I'm okay out here. I'll finish cleaning and then I'll go crash on the couch. The cops are outside so your Dad can't get past them…"

Rory lifted her head and shook it slowly, "I don't think I could sleep if I tried."

Luke sighed and pushed himself off of the counter, he threw the towel back near the sink before he walked over to her and knelt down in front of her. "Rory…"

"My Dad has done a lot of crappy things…" She felt the tears beginning to burn her eyes again; "I've had my fair share of moments when I wanted to kill him for hurting my Mom or me…" Lifting her hand she rubbed her right eye nervously, "But this…I never expected this…"

He lifted a gentle hand and placed it on her knee. "Sometimes people do crazy things when they are mad…"

"Like sleep with their ex?" Rory said lifting her face to study his.

Luke grimaced at her choice of words before he pushed himself off his knees to settle down in the chair beside her. "Yeah…I guess so."

Rory licked her lips and turned to look at him again, "I'm sorry that she did that…"

Luke shook his head in response, "I was pretty pissed for a long time." He shrugged, "But overtime I started to understand why she did it…besides it doesn't matter now."

"But it does…" Rory whispered, "It will always matter…"

Luke let the silence flow between them for a moment before he reached out to grasp her hand, "I'm not going to leave again if that's what you're afraid of."

Rory swallowed the lump in her throat and looked at their joined hands on the table. "As soon as Babette explained what happened…you were the only person I wanted to call."

"I'm glad you came to get me." Luke said giving her delicate hand a gentle squeeze. "You can always count on me."

Rory smiled and lifted her head to smile at him, "I know…that's why I came to you." She paused, "But I will admit that I was pretty mad at you for awhile too Luke. Mom told me everything that happened…"

He sighed and began to pull his hand back again, "I don't blame you for being angry Rory. I screwed up way before your Mom did…it just took me awhile to realize that. I was too wrapped up in how hurt and angry I was at her that I couldn't see I had pushed her to do that…"

Rory gave a gentle nod to show her understanding, "Sometimes its hard to see what's right in front of you…"

Luke chuckled, "Clearly I have a hard time with that…it only took me 8 years to ask your Mom out in the first place."

Rory smiled at him, "I'm glad you found the courage eventually…I always knew you would."

Luke shook his head, "You give me too much credit…"

Rory shrugged, "Maybe you don't give yourself enough credit…" She said in reply.

Luke smiled at her, feeling comfortable in the silence that surrounded them. He never thought he would be in this house with these two women again and it warmed his heart to know that not all hope was lost. He just wished it was under different circumstances…

Rory took a deep breath before standing up, she walked to the fridge and took out two bottles of water. She turned and reached up to the cabinet to get Tylenol and walked back towards her bedroom.

"I guess I should try and get some sleep. I'll have to get up early to head back to Yale to get some things. I wasn't expecting to stay very long…" She said.

Luke nodded and stood up, "Okay. Well I won't leave her alone after you leave. Don't worry."

Rory stopped at the door and turned to look at him, she smiled and shook her head, "I'm not worried."

Luke shoved his nervous hands in his pockets and just stared at her, waiting for her to enter the bedroom again. However she seemed to be thinking hard about something, she didn't look ready to leave just yet.

"Rory?" He called out to her softly.

She waited another moment before smiling at him, "Do you remember when I had the chicken pox?"

Luke felt confused by her question but he just nodded and smiled, "Sure. You'd only eat mashed potatoes for a week." He laughed remembering what had happened, "Your Mom came running into the Diner begging me to come over because she couldn't figure out how to actually peel the potato."

Rory smiled, "That's because we didn't actually have a peeler…"

Luke grunted, "I know. She was trying to do it with a spoon…"

Rory laughed and looked back at her door hoping her mother was still asleep, she turned back to Luke and smiled. "I remember when I finally started to feel better…Mom had to force you to go home."

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay…" He said shrugging as if it was no big deal.

Rory smiled, "I remember that first night you weren't here…Mom carried me to bed and she tucked me in. She sat with me, just playing with my hair to try and relax me. I knew she was tired and needed rest too…but I couldn't fall asleep." She licked her lips and looked down at her shoes feeling slightly shy about what she was going to say next, "She asked me what was bothering me…she knew that the only time I could never sleep was when I was thinking about something…"

Luke looked at her curiously, "What was it?"

She lifted her head slowly and smiled, "I told her I really wanted you to be my Dad…"

Luke felt as if someone had just squeezed his heart, for so many years he had wished he was her Father. He wanted to be the one to take care of her and Lorelai and even though he had in some ways it was never enough. At least not for him...

But to hear her say those words, it brought such happiness and warmth to his damaged heart. "Rory…"

She shrugged, "I just wanted you to know that you were always more than just the guy with the Coffee and Burgers…"

Luke smiled and shifted where he stood, "That's good to know…"

Rory smiled back and reached for the doorknob. "Good. See you tomorrow Luke."

He waited until she was hidden behind the door of her bedroom again before he let the tears that had been threatening to fall all night actually fall freely. He was so overwhelmed by all his feelings, not just from tonight but from the past few months, even the past few years. He would have been lying if he didn't think about running out the door and not looking back…

His heart was still aching over everything that had happened between he and Lorelai. But despite it all he knew he couldn't leave…not now and not ever. He loved both of the people behind that door and he was finally realizing nothing was ever going to change that.

Turning slowly, he went back to finish cleaning up the kitchen. When he was done, he walked slowly to the living room and kicked off his shoes. He plopped down on the couch and tried to calm himself enough to go to sleep. No matter what happened next he knew that he had to finally man up and stand by the two people he loved most…

* * *

The next morning, Lorelai woke slowly, at first she was incredibly confused about where she was. She tried to take in her surroundings and sighed when she realized why it was so hard to see. The side of her face was more swollen then it had been the night before…she finally realized it wasn't all just a terrible dream.

She tried to shift on the bed and whimpered when she felt the pain searing in her lower back. She had forgotten all about those bruises too…She tried to pull herself up to a sitting position to look around her daughters room. When she didn't see Rory beside her, panic began to flood her heart. Ignoring the pain all over her body, she flew off the bed and stumbled towards the door as she flung it open.

"Rory!" She screamed as the tears started to fall freely again, "Rory!" She screamed even louder.

Luke who had been down the hall finishing up a phone call quickly threw the phone down and ran to her side. "Lorelai, what's wrong?"

Her eyes turned to Luke and she instinctively grabbed his arms, "Where's Rory?"

He searched her eyes trying to understand why she was so upset, "She left a little while ago…she said she had to go back to school to get a few things. Then she was going to talk to your parents before she came back here."

Lorelai whimpered and stepped back, she put a hand on her forehead and tried to calm herself. "I thought…I thought he-"

Luke finally understood as he walked over to her again, he placed a hand on her arm and led her over the kitchen table to sit again. "She's okay. He didn't get to her…he won't get to her."

Lorelai swallowed hard and looked back up at him, "I thought you were gone too. I thought I was alone…"

He knelt down in front of her and shook his head as he rubbed her arms gently, "I was just on the phone…I had to call Lane and tell her I wouldn't be coming in."

She bit her lip and tried to wipe her tears away as he looked up at her. "I'm-I'm sorry I-I just thought-"

"Shhh…" He continued to rub her arms soothingly, "It's okay…you're okay."

She nodded her head in agreement and took a deep breath, "Okay…"

Luke waited until her breathing returned to normal and the tears had begun to subside, then he stood up and walked towards the counter. "Do you want me to make you some coffee?"

Lorelai watched him walk around her kitchen with ease; she stood up and walked back towards Rory's room. "Yeah…I just need to get something in Rory's room."

He looked back at her and smiled, "Sure. I'll be right here."

Lorelai smiled and then forced herself to enter Rorys room once again. She didn't really need anything but she needed a moment to compose herself away from him. She looked around the room and stared at the awards, the books, pictures and memories that cluttered the room. She smiled as she looked over the bookshelves that Luke had built once Rory's book collection began to take over the house. She smiled at the Yale pin on the wall and thought about how he had moved her in and out of school. She even thought of the night he had plotted to kidnap her to make sure that she didn't drop out of school.

But that night was too painful to think about…that night she had thought her whole life was going to change for the better. She thought they were going to spend the rest of their lives together and instead it had somehow gone terribly, terribly wrong somewhere along the line. She knew last night Luke had told her that he loved her, they had apologized and discussed most of what had happened. She wanted to believe that they could fix it all…but at this moment she wasn't sure they could.

She felt to scared and confused about everything that was going on, she didn't understand how it could have gotten to this point. How had she gone from happier than she ever had been to wanting to crawl into a hole and hide from everyone forever? She still couldn't believe that Christopher had actually hurt her; she couldn't believe he had hit her. They had been through so much but that was one thing she never expected…

She knew that Christopher would be angry about the letter if he ever found it. She knew there was jealousy there and she also knew he had reason to be jealous. It wasn't fair of her to agree to marry him when she knew she wasn't in love with him. But at the time she had felt so alone she didn't see any other viable options because she couldn't stand the idea of sitting in her home alone after she and Luke broke up. She was sorry that she had hurt him in the process but she also knew that no matter what she did…it didn't give him the right to put a hand on her.

Taking a deep breath, Lorelai walked over to Rory's mirror and went to lift her shirt up. She knew what the bruise on her face looked like, but she wasn't sure what she was going to see on her hips and back. She felt the sob rise in her throat when she saw the hand marks gripping both hips. Just staring at them made her feel like his hands were still there, digging in as hard as he could.

She couldn't stop the tears from falling down as she turned just slightly to look at her back. She immediately saw the dark black and blue marks caused by the continuous slamming into the counter. She began to feel nauseous as she forced herself to take a better look at her face and saw that the whole left side of her face was black and blue just like her hips and back. She couldn't stand the thought of anyone seeing her like this, but especially not Rory or Luke.

She was so caught up in her own thoughts and fears she didn't hear Luke knock on the door, he walked in when he didn't hear a response because he was afraid. "Lorelai?"

Her head snapped up to look at his reflection in the mirror, immediately she tried to lower her shirt but the damage had already been done. Luke was at her side before she could stop him; he had placed the coffee down on top of the dresser.

He tentatively reached for her shirt again but she shook her head, "Don't…"

Luke looked up into her eyes trying to get her to trust him, "Just let me look…"

She whimpered and turned her face away from him as he slowly lifted up her shirt. She tried to pretend that she didn't hear the sharp intake of breath he made when he saw the bruises. Turning her head just slightly, she looked at him out of the corner of her eye to gauge his reaction.

"Jesus Lorelai…" Luke whispered in a raw, pained voice.

He stared down at the bruised flesh and felt his blood begin to boil in anger and frustration. In the last few months since their breakup, he had thought about what it would be like to look at her body again. He remembered the way her smooth skin felt under his large tough hands. He remembered the way she always sucked in her breath when he touched her stomach because she was ticklish. Never in all of his wildest dreams did he think if he ever had the privilege of looking at and touching Lorelai Gilmore again this would be how it happened…

"It's not that bad…" She tried to reason with him when she realized he couldn't take his eyes off of the black and blue marks, "I'm fine."

Luke shook his head and lifted his face to look at her, "Lorelai it is bad…it's very bad."

She shook her head, "Luke I-"

"This is all my fault…" He whispered as he let her shirt fall from his hands.

"Luke…" She said shaking her head, "God no…please don't say that. That's not true at all!"

Luke looked at her desperately, "Well first of all if I hadn't of been such an asshole to you last year you wouldn't have gone to him. Then you never would have married him…we would be married and he never would have been able to do this to you."

Lorelai sighed and stepped back, "Luke please-"

"And then you write that letter for me and he found it and that's what pushed him to this point." He said trying to reason with her.

Lorelai licked her chapped lips and stuck out her hand to reach him, "Luke I am a big girl. I made my own decisions. I chose to go to Christopher that night. I chose to marry him. I chose to write that letter. You didn't make those decisions for me."

"But I pushed you to him." Luke said feeling frustrated as he tried to sort through his own feelings. "You know that's true…"

She sighed and shook her head again, "Luke…I never expected Christopher to do something like this. Never in a million years would I have thought this could happen but it did. I made my choices. You made yours and Chris made his own. Its just the way that it is."

"Lorelai…when Rory told me what happened I wanted to find Christopher and wrap my hands around his fucking neck." He said through clenched teeth.

"And what would that accomplish?" Lorelai asked squinting her tired eyes at him, "Hitting him the first two times didn't change anything did it?"

Luke shook his head, "It doesn't matter if it will change anything. It will make me feel better."

Lorelai smiled sadly at him as she walked all the way up to him, she reached for his hand and squeezed it gently. "Luke you know you can't do that…"

"Of course I can." Luke said angrily, she watched his nostrils flare in frustration. "I'm gonna fucking kill him when I see him."

Lorelai shook her head and pulled his hand closer to her, "No you aren't. You can't."

He stared at her for a moment, "Why not?"

"Because that's not who you are." Lorelai whispered trying to reason with him, "And because if you do that…you'll lose any chance you might have of being in April's life. Then that letter I wrote would be for nothing…"

Luke listened to her words and let them sink in, he knew what she was saying was right but it didn't change how he felt. He hated Christopher. He had always hated Christopher and he had hated him even more when Lorelai married him. The few punches he had been able to get in weren't enough to take the edge off. But now that he had done this, Luke didn't care if he would get in trouble, he wanted revenge. He wanted Christopher to feel the pain he had inflicted on Lorelai and then some…

But Lorelai was right…any issues that would involve the law would negatively effect his custody battle with April. He couldn't bare to think that the court would rule in favor of Anna and allow her to take his daughter away once again. He sighed and stepped away from Lorelai and started to look around the room.

"I fucking hate him." He managed to spit out.

Lorelai couldn't help but laugh, he sounded like a young boy who was angry at his parents about something. "He's not my favorite person at the moment either…"

Luke took a few deep, cleansing breaths before he turned back to her, "I just wish I could go back and change it all…I wish I could make it so that none of this ever happened."

She smiled gently at him, "I know Luke. I know…"

Sighing, he turned to Rory's dresser again and picked up the cup of coffee and held it out to her. "Here…"

Reaching out she took the mug from him and slowly lifted it to her lips; she inhaled the smell at first and sighed happily. "Hello old friend."

Luke rolled his eyes, "Clearly you missed the coffee more than you missed me."

"What can I say…I really am a Junkie. You know this." Lorelai said trying to joke with him and she smiled when she saw him chuckle softly.

"Geez…you didn't even try to deny it. I feel cheap." He teased back.

Lorelai smiled as she took a sip of her coffee, she held it down again and smiled sincerely at him. "You were always more than just the guy with the coffee and burgers Luke…"

He smirked at her; "Rory said the same thing last night…"

"Did she?" Lorelai said with a smile as she took another sip.

"I always hoped you came for more than just the coffee and burgers…" He whispered as the corner of his lips turned up into a small smile.

"Well now you know…" She whispered softly.

Luke smiled, "Yeah…now I know."

Lorelai smiled and shook her head before she walked back over to Rory's bed. She placed the cup down on the table beside it and sat down.

"So you said Rory was going to talk to my parents…" She whispered nervously.

Luke nodded as he shoved his hands in his pockets, "She is…"

Lorelai groaned and laid back on the bed, grimacing as she felt the bruises rub against her shirt. "As if my day couldn't get any better…I now have to endure the wrath of Emily Gilmore."

Luke shook his head, "I don't think she will be that bad about this. How could she be?"

Lorelai sat up and shrugged, "Who knows, she always thought so highly of Christopher."

Luke snorted, "Trust me…I know."

Lorelai frowned sadly, "If you want to leave when they get here…I'll understand."

Luke shook his head, "I told you I wasn't going anywhere Lorelai and I'm going to keep that promise."

"But what about the Diner?" She asked softly.

"Lane and Ceaser can handle it for as long as they need to. I trust them." Luke said shrugging, "Besides this is more important."

"But you don't have any clothes or anything here…" She whispered.

Luke walked closer to her and sat down at the edge of the bed, far enough away to make sure he was giving her space but close enough to know he was still there for her. "Jackson said he would go by my place and get me some clothes and other stuff…"

"But Luke…" She whispered wearily.

Luke leaned in just a little, "Unless…you don't want me here…"

Her eyes shot up to look at him as she shook her head, "Oh no. No! That's not what this is about. I just…I don't want to intrude in your life and I know you have things to do…" She shrugged, "I don't want to take up any of your time with April…"

Luke understood now what she was worried about, "Lorelai…I'm not leaving you. Not this time…"

"When are you supposed to have April next?" She asked curiously.

"Not until next weekend…" Luke said softly, "She has a lot of packing to do with Anna plus its usually easier for her with school to just come on the weekends."

Lorelai looked down and nodded nervously, "Okay…"

Luke sighed again and reached for her hand, "Lorelai, I know what you are afraid of. But I'm going to figure out a way to be there for you both."

She licked her lips sadly, "Well what are you going to tell her?"

Luke sighed, "I haven't figured that out yet. I'm just trying to take one day at a time right now…this has been a lot to cope with in such a short period of time."

Lorelai smiled nervously at him, "I still can't believe you're here…"

He squeezed her hand to reassure her he wasn't going anywhere, "No where else I should be right now."

Lorelai looked down at their joined hands and felt a sense of peace begin to wash over her. Years before when she had met Luke, she didn't understand what it was about him but he had instantly made her feel safe. That was one of the reasons she had stayed in Stars Hollow and why she had always gone to the Diner. She needed to feel safe and Luke always made her feel safe…

She smiled and squeezed his hand back and let herself relax for the first time since last night. She knew that no matter what happened next, no matter if her and Luke were ever able to repair the damage that had been caused he would always protect her.

* * *

Meanwhile, Rory raced back to her apartment and packed everything she thought she might need. She explained to Paris what had happened and she in turn had agreed to talk to Rory's Professors to explain why she would be missing from class for the time being. Paris had promised to catch her up on everything she missed and told her to send her love to her Mother for her.

Once she was done at school, she jumped back in her car and drove straight to her Grandparents house. When she pulled up outside and parked the car, she had to give herself a few moments to gather her thoughts. She didn't know how they were going to react to the news…

They had both spent so many years trying to get her parents together and now that they had succeeded she worried they wouldn't believe what had actually happened. Despite all their problems, Rory knew that her grandparents truly did love her Mother even though they rarely showed it. She chose to believe that they would support their daughter no matter how difficult it was to hear this news.

Taking a deep breath, Rory exited the car and walked up to the front door. She raised her hand to ring the doorbell and waited for the maid to answer. When she did, she greeted her kindly before pulling off her coat and going to look for her Grandparents.

She found Emily first sitting in the Parlor reading, "Well hello Rory! What a lovely surprise this is!"

Rory smiled as her Grandmother stood up and walked towards her to give her a tight hug. "Hi Grandma. Sorry to just drop in like this…"

Emily pulled a way and waved a hand at her granddaughter, "Oh nonsense. You know we always love to see you."

Rory tried to smile through her growing nerves, "Is Grandpa here? I need to talk to you both about something. I would have called but this is a conversation I felt that we needed to have face to face."

Emily's own smile fell and she placed a hand on her Granddaughters arm, "Is everything alright Rory?"

"Can we get Grandpa first? I don't think I can handle having to tell this story twice." She said feeling the tears already starting to burn in her eyes.

Emily nodded slowly before she turned and walked towards her husbands study. Rory walked over to the couch and sat down, trying to steady herself as she waited. When her Grandparents walked back out to greet her, she tried to smile as Richard walked over to greet her.

"Hello Rory." He said pulling her up for a hug.

Rory let the hug linger longer than usual, she feeling of his large arms around her seemed to give her the strength she needed. "Hi Grandpa."

Emily gestured for them all to sit, "Should I get us something to drink?"

Rory shook her head and sat down and waited for them to both be seated across from her. "No. No I'm alright…"

Emily nodded slowly and crossed her legs, "Well…what did you need to talk to us about?"

Rory took a shaky breath and looked back and forth between them, "Last night I got a call from my Moms neighbor Babette. Do you remember her?"

Emily nodded, "Sure. She's the one crazy voice right? And her husband plays the piano and wears that ridiculous hat?"

Rory couldn't help but smile. "Right…that's her."

"What did she want?" Richard asked as he stared at his granddaughter trying to understand where she was going with this.

"She said I needed to come home because Mom wasn't feeling well…" Rory whispered, "But…when I got there Sookie and Jackson were there too and some other of my Mom's friends."

"But why?" Emily asked, "Was your Mother having some sort of party?"

Rory shook her head, "Babette and her husband Morey had gone over to my Mom's house earlier because they heard fighting. They wanted to check and see if everything was okay…"

"Well where was your father?" Richard asked, "If all those people were there and your Mother wasn't feeling well where was he?"

Rory felt the lump rising in her throat again, "My Mom and Dad got into an argument because Mom wrote a letter to the court to help Luke get joint custody of his daughter April."

"Is she talking to Luke again?" Emily asked trying to keep up with Rory.

Rory nodded, "I guess so. I mean I don't really know what they were doing before yesterday, I just know that my Mom wanted to help him so that he didn't lose April." She shook her head, "But that's not important…"

"So they got into an argument over this letter?" Richard asked as he fidgeted in his seat, "Did your Father get upset and leave again? Is that the problem?"

Rory sighed, "That's part of it…"

"Part of it?" Richard asked suddenly feeling nervous, he leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. "Rory, what is it that you aren't telling us?"

Rory licked her lips and lifted her hand to brush away the hair that had fallen into her face. "Dad uh…he…" She sighed again and looked straight at her Grandfather, "He attacked Mom…"

Rory heard the sharp intake of her Grandmothers breath but she only had eyes for her Grandfather. At first she didn't know what she was seeing on his face, she couldn't tell if it was disbelief or pure anger like she had seen on Luke's the night before.

"What do you mean he attacked her?" Richard asked in a strained voice.

Rory fidgeted for a moment, "Mom said they were arguing and he kept pushing her against the counter in the kitchen. She asked him to stop but he wouldn't…and then he got so mad he…" She paused and let her eyes flicker over to her Grandmother who seemed to be immobile in her spot; "He struck her across the face."

Emily stood up quickly and walked behind her chair making sure to keep her back to the other two in the room. Rory looked back over at her Grandfather and finally understood what she saw written on his face; regret and pain.

"He hit her?" Richard asked as his eyes bore into Rory's, "He put his hands on her?"

Rory sighed, "I know. I couldn't believe it either…but its true. I saw Mom…it's bad. Her face is all bruised and when we were with the police last night I was there when she showed them her back and hips. She has a lot of hand marks on her…all black and blue." She mumbled as the tears fell from her eyes.

"Oh God…" Emily squeaked out as she walked to Richard's side. "Oh God Richard…"

Richard took a deep breath before standing up, "Where is your Father now? Where is your Mom?"

Rory looked up at him as he stood so tall before her, "Mom's at home with Luke. I don't know where Dad is…he hasn't come back to the house yet. But there is a warrant out for his arrest…there is a police officer guarding the house so he may have been spooked if he saw it trying to come back."

Richard stood up straighter and pulled his suit down, "Come on Rory. We will go with you back to your house."

Emily looked at Rory for a moment before whispering, "Luke is there?"

Rory stared at her Grandmother for a moment; she desperately wished that she could change the woman's stubborn opinions sometimes. "Yes. I went to him last night because I was scared and I knew that he would protect us both. He hasn't left her side since he got there…"

Emily regarded her granddaughter for a second before opening her mouth to speak again, "Rory I'm so sor-"

Rory stood up and walked closer to them, "Don't. It will only drive you crazy." She sighed and reached for her Grandmothers hand. "The only thing I'm going to ask of you both if you want to be around Mom…is that you finally accept Luke for who he is." She looked up at her Grandfather again, "He loves my Mom and he loves me too…he'd do anything for either of us. I think he proved that last night by putting all the crap that happened between them aside and being there to protect us. You can't ask him to leave and you can't be rude…if you want to help and if you want to be a part of our lives you need to accept that he is going to be there. He's not leaving…not this time."

Richard looked down at his wife and waited for her to reply first, Emily smiled weakly. "He's a better man than I gave him credit for…" She said.

Rory nodded slowly, "Yes. He is."

Richard put a gentle but firm hand on Rory's arm before walking past her to get his keys and wallet. Rory watched him as he walked with determination to the door, he didn't turn to look at either of them again and she wondered just what he was feeling. It was often hard to gage just how Richard and Emily felt about their daughter. She knew they loved her but she never knew how they would react to certain situations and this was one situation she never pictured them all in.

Emily quickly snapped out of her own daze and began to yell orders to the maids letting them know they would be gone for awhile. She followed her husband out to the car and Rory took a moment to compose herself before following them. Her Grandparents were already pulling out of the driveway when Rory slipped into her own car. As she turned the key she said a silent prayer hoping that they kept to their promise and were kind to Luke. The last thing Lorelai needed was to be caught up in that drama again…for now she needed support and nothing more.

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it. I especially liked writing the scene between Rory and Luke because I have always loved their relationship and wanted to explore it some more. Anyway, up next will be the Gilmore's going to Lorelai's house to see her, will they keep their promise to Lorelai about being kind to Luke? Read and find out!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys I am so appreciating all the great feedback you are giving me! I hope you continue to enjoy the story as much as I enjoy writing it. I have some tweaking to do on the next chapter but it should be up at some point tomorrow, possibly tomorrow night at some point and if not definitely by Saturday morning! But for now read this chapter and then drop in a review! THANKS! **

* * *

Lorelai and Luke were sitting in the living room as he attempted to get her to eat something. She was curled up in the corner of the couch with a blanket draped over her shoulders and Paul Anka resting his head on her legs as she stared at the plate of Eggs and bacon Luke had set down on the coffee table.

"You really need to eat something Lorelai. It might make you feel better…" Luke whispered trying to help her.

She shook her head, "I don't think I could keep anything down…"

He sighed, "Come on…just try and eat something. Please? I mean you didn't eat dinner last night so…"

Luke caught himself and sat up straighter, he looked at her nervously and noticed that she was staring down the hallway. "It figures the one time I attempt to actually cook something this happens…"

Luke looked down at his hands; it was too painful to look at her. "Lorelai…"

"Chris was always nagging me because I didn't cook. He always wanted to know how Rory and I survived for so many years when I could barely boil water." She licked her lips and looked back at him with a sad smile, "I guess if I had told him you were the one feeding me for all those years this may have happened sooner…"

He lifted his head to look at her; he was starting to feel at a loss for words on what to say to her about everything. They had discussed so much in the last twelve hours, more than he had expected but he felt like the reality of the situation was finally starting to sink in. They hadn't had much contact in the last few months, and the little contact they did have was usually awkward or fueled by anger and regret.

Just as he was opening his mouth to say something, they heard a car pull into the driveway. Luke watched as Lorelai seemed to tense and freeze in her spot. He stood up quickly and walked to the window with Paul Anka hot on his heels, pushing aside the blinds he checked to see if he recognized the car. He watched as the Police Officer exited his own car to see who was approaching. When Rory's car pulled up behind the first car, Luke knew who was about to step out.

"So who is it? Chris or my parents?" Lorelai asked from her spot on the couch.

Luke watched as Richard and Emily exited their car and approached the police officer, "Your parents…"

Lorelai took a deep breath and pulled the blanket off of her, "Okay…"

He turned his head to look at her slowly, "Okay?"

She stood up and folded the blanket before placing it on the arm of the couch. "Well its not like I can hide from them forever." She glanced over at him and smirked, "You still have time to run you know…"

Luke turned to give her his full attention, "I told you I'm not going anywhere."

Shrugging she pulled at the sleeves of her shirt and smiled playfully at him, "Alright. Can't say I didn't give you an out at least."

He rolled his eyes and walked back around the couch to stand beside her, "I'm not going anywhere." He repeated again.

Lorelai couldn't seem to take her eyes off of him as she heard the front door open. She heard her daughter saying something to her parents but at the moment, it didn't matter. All she cared about was that despite everything that had happened, everything that she and her parents had put this man through he was still standing beside her.

"Mom?" Rory called from the foyer as she walked into the living room, "Are you up for some visitors?" She asked as they stepped closer to her.

Emily and Richard followed Rory and stopped when they saw Lorelai and Luke standing together. Lorelai's face was turned so they couldn't see the bruises but when she finally turned to face them, no one could pretend they hadn't heard Emily gasp in shock.

"Uh…hi Mom. Hi Dad." Lorelai whispered nervously, "What brings you here?" She tried to joke suddenly feeling incredibly uncomfortable given the situation.

No one spoke for a moment, all eyes seemed to be on Lorelai and she felt her cheeks begin to burn with shame and embarrassment. She kicked at the ground nervously and opened her mouth to speak again before her fathers voice pulled her back to reality.

"I will hire the best lawyer I can find and make sure that he never comes near you again. We'll have the divorce finalized as soon as possible. Don't you worry about a thing Lorelai, I'll take care of it all." He said in a smooth, dignified voice.

Lorelai lifted her head to stare at her father; it felt strange to hear him talk this way. She thought back to the night she had told her parents that she was pregnant with Christopher's child. Despite their disappointment she couldn't remember her father looking the way he did right now or sounding the way he did. She remembered how he said Christopher's name that night, how it came easy to him. It hadn't gone unnoticed by her or anyone else that Richard seemed unable to speak the mans name here and now.

"Dad I-" She started to say.

Richard took two strides closer to her and shook his head, "You don't have to say anything."

"But-" She lifted her hand to reach for him but instinctively pulled it back as if she had been burned. "I-"

Richard shook his head again, "Lorelai…this is unforgivable. You will get a divorce and a restraining order and that's all there is too it."

Lorelai stared up at the man she called her Father, it felt strange to her to be standing in this room with him. She would never pretend that she had an easy relationship with either one of her parents. It had been difficult since the day she had been born and proved that she did not under any circumstances fit into their idea of what life should be. For so long she could remember she had tried her best to rebel against their ideas of whom they thought she should be.

Fighting them seemed to come so naturally to her because its what she had done for so many years. Fighting with her Mother was the easiest because they both knew how to push each other's buttons. However fighting with her father always proved to be a little more difficult. They had both said and did things over the years that hurt one another but she had always felt that her father had accepted her a little more than her Mother did. He didn't have to say anything usually; just an understanding nod of approval often let her know that he did in fact love her.

But here in this moment as she looked into her Father's eyes she could see the love that she had craved for so many years. "Dad…" Her voice betrayed her as it cracked with emotion and she felt her knees begin to give out underneath her.

She could feel Luke reacting behind her as he went to grab a hold of her, but somehow Richard beat him too it. She felt herself being pulled close by two strong arms she hadn't felt in a long time. She breathed in the familiar scent of her father's cologne, the same one he had used since she was a child and the tears instantly began to fall again.

Richard held her against his chest and took a deep breath trying to compose himself. "It's alright Lorelai. Everything is going to be alright…"

She could feel herself begin to grip her father back, feeling like if she let go the world would fall apart around her. She couldn't help but think of how many times she had wanted her father to say those exact words to her over the years but instead had been greeted by silence.

Luke stepped back realizing he should let Lorelai have this moment with her Father. He knew how much she craved that love and attention from her parents that she never usually got. He couldn't deny the fact that it had been pure instinct to reach out to her when he sensed she was beginning to crumble again. How often had he been the shoulder for her to cry on over the years? Even before they had started a relationship, he was always there when she needed him and that had made him feel special. Over the last few months he hadn't been that guy and it hurt him to know that she had been hurting without him. He did wish that right now she was leaning on him but he also knew just how important it was for her to feel supported by her parents as well.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped aside and walked towards Rory and Emily. He noticed the tears in Rory's eyes and wondered if they were from sadness or if she was crying because she too understood how much her Mother had actually needed this. But he also noticed that Emily hadn't even moved from her spot beside her Granddaughter, she looked frozen in time, he wasn't even sure if she had blinked.

"Uh…" He whispered holding his arm out towards the kitchen, "Does anyone want some coffee?"

Rory turned her head to look at Luke and smiled, "Sure. Come on Grandma. Let's go into the kitchen…"

Emily let her gaze turn away from the scene in front of her and she nodded absentmindedly as Rory led her out of the room. Luke followed behind them and hoped things would continue to go smoothly, despite the fact that he had promised Lorelai he would say he couldn't pretend he wasn't nervous about seeing the Gilmores again.

Once the other three were gone, Lorelai took a few deep breaths as she tried to pull herself together again. She sniffled and wiped at her eyes, gasping in pain when she rubbed the bruise on her face.

Richard sighed and rubbed her shoulders gently, "Better?"

Lorelai slowly lifted her eyes to meet his, "I'm really glad you're here Dad…"

Richard set his lips in a tight line and nodded, "Of course."

Suddenly feeling tired; Lorelai slowly detached herself from the comfort of her Father's arms and sat back down on the couch. Richard hesitated for just a moment before sitting down beside her; he stared at the plate of untouched breakfast in front of him.

"Did Luke make that for you?" He asked, unable to think of anything else to say.

Lorelai smiled and pulled her feet up under legs in a pretzel like position. "Yes. He tried to get me to eat but I wasn't feeling so hungry…"

Richard nodded in understanding and looked down the hall to look at his wife who Rory had sat down at the table. "It was very good of him to come here and help you and Rory…"

Lorelai's smile widened, "Well he's a very good guy…"

Richard turned his attention back to her and studied the bruise on her face; "I guess your Mother and I have a poor judge of character sometimes…"

Lorelai sighed and let her eyes travel over her fathers aging face, "Maybe you were just blinded by the glitz and glamour of your life. You forgot just forgot to stop and see the important things for a while…"

He nodded and looked down at his hands, which were resting on his knees, "Maybe. Or maybe we just wanted to see what the rest of the world expected us to be."

"Which was what?" Lorelai asked curiously.

He smiled sadly before looking back at her, "Perfect."

Lorelai smiled back, "There is no such thing as a perfect family."

"No. I suppose there isn't." Richard said with a chuckle, "Lord knows we are far from it."

They let the comfortable silence envelop them for a few moments as they listened to Rory and Luke rummage around in the kitchen. Lorelai shifted slightly and looked back at her father trying to understand how he must be feeling and what he must be thinking.

"Can I ask you something?" Lorelai asked softly.

Richard turned back to her and nodded his head slowly. "Sure."

She licked her lips and took a deep breath, "When you found out I was pregnant with Rory…" She paused and shrugged, "Did you really expect me to marry Christopher and live happily ever after?"

Richard smiled at his daughter and shook his head, "No."

"Well then why were you so insistent on it? Even all these years later it was all you ever wanted." Lorelai questioned.

Richard sighed, "I suppose I just wanted to make sure you were going to be okay Lorelai. I guess I thought if you, Christopher and Rory could be a family everything would work out."

"Everything between me and Christopher or everything between you, mom and me?" She asked softly.

"The later…" Richard said with a sad glance. "I thought maybe it would bridge the gap between us all somehow."

Lorelai let his words sink in before she looked down at her hands in her lap, "Dad…I just want you to know that I don't hate you or Mom."

Richard smiled and lifted his large hand to take in her small one, "Well good. Because I want you to know that we never hated you either Lorelai."

She nodded and continued to stare at their now joined hands, "I guess I just wanted you to accept and respect me…"

"Lorelai…" Richard said in a soft voice, she turned back to meet his gaze and waited for him to speak again. "I want you to know that you have made me very proud to be your father. I should have said that years ago but I wasn't brave enough…"

"Dad…" She whispered as she gave his hand a squeeze.

He shook his head to silence her, "The way you raised Rory all on your own still amazes me everyday. I don't know how you did it…how you managed to make it look so effortless and still do it better than your Mother and I did with all the help we had…" He shrugged, "I'll never understand how you did it. And then on top of that you built your own business from the ground up. And what's more…you are a good person. A better person than I ever have been and ever will be…and for that I am incredibly honored to call you my Daughter." He finished his last few words with a rough, emotion filled voice that shot right through to her heart.

Lorelai swallowed the growing lump in her throat and chuckled softly, "Well man…where you been hiding that all old man?"

He laughed sadly and leaned forward to plant a gentle kiss atop her head, "We will fix this Lorelai. I will fix this."

Lorelai breathed her father in once again and smiled as she moved to rest her head against his shoulder. She felt him squeeze the hand that he still held and for the first time in a long time she felt like a little kid again finally getting the Father she had always wanted.

* * *

Back in the kitchen, Rory leaned against the counter as she watched her Grandmother sit and stare off into space from her seat at the table. She was aware of Luke moving around her as he prepared coffee and tried to find some food to offer everyone. She couldn't imagine how nervous or uncomfortable he must be feeling at the moment and yet he was still here by their side.

Pushing herself away from the counter, she walked over to Emily and held out a cup to her, "Do you want some Grandma? Luke makes the best coffee on the East Coast."

"Just the East Coast?" Luke teased trying to break the awkward tension.

Rory looked back at him and smiled, "You have some slight competition in Seattle I hear."

Luke rolled his eyes, "Great."

Rory smiled back at him before turning back to her Grandma, "It might make you feel better…"

Emily reached up and took the cup without even looking up at her. Rory stepped back towards the counter and looked over at Luke who seemed at a loss of words. She was just about to say something to him when she heard Emily's voice reaching across the kitchen.

"I'm sorry Luke." She said in a strained voice.

Rory looked at Luke out of the corner of her eye and noticed as he stood up straighter and turned his attention to the woman before him, "Oh uh…you don't have too-"

Emily lifted her head and looked directly at him. "I was unfair to you." She paused and took a sip of her coffee. "For all these years you have taken care of my daughter and granddaughter when I didn't and Christopher didn't…You were the one who made sure they were safe and well taken care of and I didn't see that. Or maybe I just didn't want to see it…"

Luke shifted nervously where he stood, "Emily you really don't-"

"I can't understand how Christopher would do something like this. But I realize now that I gave him too much credit over the years. If he had wanted to be with Lorelai he would have made it happen long before now. He could have manned up and done the right thing despite Lorelai refusing to marry him. He could have provided for Rory but he chose not too." She glanced down at her coffee nervously, "And yet you had no obligation…no reason to help them and you still did. Why is that?"

Luke let her words sink in and he waited until she looked back at him, "I don't know." He whispered.

Emily smiled faintly, "Well I do." She stood up and walked all the way over to him. "It's because you're a much better man than Christopher ever was or ever will be."

Luke stared at her for a moment, he wasn't sure what to say or how to react. This was not how he pictured his reunion with the Gilmores to go. Of course he never expected to be in this current situation but hearing Emily Gilmore speak so highly of him was a strange and overwhelming feeling. He had expected her to come in here and ignore him completely and yet she had proven him wrong. Just has he had proven her wrong…

He took a deep breath before responding, "Thank you Emily."

She nodded slowly and then took another sip of her coffee before turning back to Rory. "You were wrong Rory. I've had coffee on the East Coast, West Coast and everywhere in between and this is the best cup I've had in my lifetime." She looked back at Luke and smiled, "What's your secret?"

Luke shrugged, "I'm taking it to the grave."

Emily smiled slyly, "As you should…"

She turned slowly and walked out of the kitchen leaving a smiling Rory and a stunned Luke by themselves. Rory gave him a few moments before she turned back to him.

"You okay?" She asked softly as she placed a hand on his arm.

Luke chuckled and shook his head, "She's a hell of a confusing woman that Grandma of yours."

Rory smiled, "Yeah. She's a tough nut to crack…but once you do she's not so bad."

Luke smiled, "No. I guess she's not."

She nodded and reached for her own cup of coffee, "Just don't get to used to it. She'll probably have more snarky comments to come in the near future. She can't help it."

He laughed again, "I'll be on guard."

Rory and turned to walk back into the kitchen, she paused at the end of the counter before she turned back to him. "She's right you know. You are a much better man than my Father…"

Luke stared at her, unable to think of anything to say in return. But when she just smiled at him he knew he didn't need to say anything at all. He watched her walk away and then turned to reach for the third cup of coffee before walking back into the living room.

Once Rory and Luke rejoined everyone in the living room, Emily and Richard stood up and walked to the corner together. They seemed to be discussing legal matters and what to do about the current situation.

Rory took the seat that her Grandpa had occupied before and wrapped a protective arm around her Mother. "How you feeling?"

Lorelai tried to smile back, "I'm okay…just a little sore."

Rory nodded and rubbed her arm gently; "You were pretty restless in your sleep last night. I tried to wake you up a few times but you were so tired you couldn't wake up."

Lorelai nodded, "Bad dreams…"

Rory glanced at Luke out of the corner of her eye and saw how he stared at her mother with such love and adoration. "Luke said you haven't eaten anything…"

Lorelai glanced at Luke, "He does have a big mouth that guy."

Luke rolled his eyes, "Look whose talking…"

Rory laughed at them both, "Well the eggs are probably cold by now. Want me to get you something else?"

"I could call Lane and have her bring some stuff over. It is Danish Day." He said with a soft smile.

Lorelai's eyes lit up, "Really? God I've missed Danish Day…"

He scoffed, "Once again I see you miss the food more than me. I'm starting to think the only reason you dated me in the first place was to get free food at the Diner."

Lorelai rolled her eyes playfully, "Luke…we both know you rarely let me pay long before we ever got together. Being your girlfriend just meant I got first dibs on all the best treats."

"Oh so that was the bonus…" He said laughing to himself as he looked down at his hands nervously. "Glad I was good for something."

Lorelai smiled at him thoughtfully, "You were good for a lot of things Danes…"

His head lifted up towards hers again, "I'm glad you thought so." Lorelai just smiled back and he pushed himself off the chair he had been sitting on. "I'll call Lane. Be right back."

Lorelai watched as he excused himself and once again went on his way to do something to make her happy. How she had ever been able to walk away from him was beyond her. She smiled when she saw Paul Anka jump down from where he had been perched on the stairs and follow Luke down the hall. Her smile grew even wider when she saw Luke sit down at the table and reach for his cell with one hand and let his other hand affectionately pet the dog he had pretended to hate so much.

"Poor Paul Anka must be so confused…" She whispered to her daughter.

Rory let her gaze travel to where her mother was looking and she smiled at the scene, "He looks happy to see Luke."

"Yes. He does." Lorelai whispered back.

Just then, Emily appeared at her side but seemed unable to look her directly in the eye. "Your Father is on the phone with one of his Lawyer friends. They will find the best person to deal with this type of situation."

"Okay…" Lorelai said looking down at her hands, she too seemed unable to meet the elder woman's gaze.

Emily stared at the top of her daughter's head and let her eyes travel to the bruise on her face, she sighed and began to speak again. "You might feel better if you eat something."

Lorelai smiled and glanced at her quickly, "Luke is calling Lane to get us some food from the Diner. The eggs he made earlier are cold by now. I'll give them to Paul Anka in a bit."

Emily reached down and straighter her shirt out, "Oh. Okay well…" She paused and glanced up at the staircase, "What about a bath? That might help…"

Lorelai let he gaze fall upon her mother again, but for longer this time. She smiled thinking back to when she was a child and how she had often wished her Mother would be there for her bath times like most kids. However for her the Nanny was always the one to give her baths, she often felt like her Mother couldn't be bothered with such trivial matters. She made sure with Rory that she never missed any of those precious moments during her childhood.

"Sure…a bath might be nice…" Lorelai whispered.

Emily nodded slowly, "Want some help? I can draw it for you while you get ready…"

Lorelai looked up at her slowly, "That would be nice. Thank you…"

Rory watched the exchange between them and smiled, "I'll go give Luke a list of things to get us just incase he forgets what our favorite pastries are."

Lorelai stood up and smiled at her daughter, "We both know he hasn't. But you go ahead. I'll be fine."

Rory nodded and stood up to walk towards the kitchen. Lorelai looked over at her mother and then took a deep breath before walking towards the staircase. She could hear her mother take a deep breath as she moved to follow her up the stairs towards her bedroom. Once they reached the room, Lorelai walked over to her mirror and looked at her reflection again for a moment. The bruise on her face seemed to have grown larger to her and she swallowed the lump in her throat that accompanied the pain on her face.

She could hear her Mother rummaging around in the bathroom before she turned on the hot water. "The tile in here really is beautiful. It matches perfectly with this tub."

Lorelai smiled sadly and began to lift her shirt up over her head, "Luke did it all…"

Emily was silent for a moment, "I'll have to tell him what a fine job he did."

Lorelai grimaced when she saw the other bruises on her skin again, "I wouldn't. It will only remind him that Christopher was the one that benefited from his hard work."

Emily fell silent once more as she added the bubbles once the water was warm enough. Lorelai seemed transfixed by the large handprints on her hips, they seemed so unnatural to her. She felt like they were taunting her, reminding her how badly she had screwed up to get to this point.

She was so lost in thought; she didn't hear her Mother walk up behind her. "Oh Lorelai…"

She jumped at the sound of Emily's voice and grabbed a towel nearby to cover her half naked body. "Mom I-"

Emily took a few steps before she stood right beside her; she placed a hand on her shoulder and tried unsuccessfully to hold back the loud sob growing in her throat. "I am so sorry he did this to you."

Lorelai tried to think of something snarky to say back to ease the tension and to forget her own pain but nothing came to her. Instead she let out a shaky breath and looked back at herself in the mirror and watched her Mother watch her.

"I was so scared…" She whispered softly with a trembling voice. "I just…I couldn't believe that it was actually happening. It was so quick and yet it felt like it lasted for hours…"

Emily squeezed her shoulder gently; "Your Father will make sure that he never hurts you again Lorelai. Don't you worry. He knows all the best people to-"

"Deal with this type of situation." Lorelai finished for her echoing her earlier comments; she smiled at her through the mirror. "I know. You said that already." She sighed again, "I just never expected to be one of those women who find themselves in this type of situation…"

"I suppose no one ever does…" Emily whispered in response, she looked at her daughter's reflection in the mirror and then spoke again. "I should have trusted you more…"

Lorelai let her words sink in before answering, "What do you mean?"

"I should have trusted that you knew what was best for you. You thought Luke was best for you and I thought Christopher was." She shook her head and laughed sadly, "I have never been so wrong in my whole life…"

Lorelai reached up and placed her hand over her mothers, "Mom this isn't your fault…"

Emily shrugged, "I may not have lifted my hand to you but I did force the man responsible for it on you. And for that…" Another sob burst from her mouth, "I will never forgive myself."

Lorelai watched as the tears began to fall down her Mother's face. She had often pictured what it would be like if her Mother ever admitted that she had been wrong about Luke all along. This was not at all how she pictured it to be…

She had thought she would feel victorious and proud because she had proved her Mother wrong. However in this moment, she had never felt less victorious in her life. She turned quickly and pulled her Mother in for a hug and let herself once again succumb to the tears that were dying to be let out. As she stood their in her mothers arms though, she couldn't help but realize the tears they were both shedding went back a lot longer than just these few moments…

* * *

Downstairs, Rory had excused herself to call Logan to fill him in on what was happening. She had missed several calls from him and didn't want to worry him about what was going on since he was so far away. When Luke finished with Lane, he had walked back into the living room expecting to find Rory, Lorelai and Emily still there. Instead he saw Richard sitting alone on the couch with a solemn expression on his face.

He waited a moment before speaking. "Um…I made some coffee if you'd like some."

Richard turned his head slowly and smiled at Luke before pulling himself up off the couch, "Oh no thank you. I already had some this morning and unlike my Daughter my body can't seem to handle more than one cup a day."

Luke smiled, "She does have a gift that one…"

Richard chuckled, "It would seem that she does, yes." An awkward silence filled the room for another moment before Richard began to speak again. "I want to thank you for being there for my Daughter and Granddaughter."

Luke lifted his hand to wave him off, "Don't mention it."

Richard shook his head and walked closer to him, as he shoved his hands in his pockets, "No I will mention it because I know my wife and I were never all that nice to you."

"Oh you were fine." Luke said with a nervous smile, "Really. You don't have too-"

"A fathers most important job is to protect their children from all harm." He paused and looked up towards the stairs where he knew Lorelai was, "And I seem to have been unable to do that for most of Lorelai's life."

"You did the best that you could." Luke said softly.

Richard smiled again, "You are too kind Luke." He sighed, "We both know that I could have done better…"

Luke shrugged, "People make mistakes Mr. Gilmore. I mean I missed out on the first 12 years of my daughter's life. I'll never get that time back…but I'm doing the best I can for now. One day at a time…"

Richard nodded, "I suppose you are right. One day at a time is all you can really do."

Luke nodded and shoved his own hands into his pockets, "If there is one thing I do know its that Lorelai loves you very much…you don't have to worry about that."

Richard smiled sadly as his eyes welled up with tears. "Well I love her too."

Luke smiled back, "I know."

Taking a deep breath the old man pulled his right hand from his pocket and stuck it out to Luke. "You are a good man Luke Danes."

Luke smiled down at the outstretched hand Richard was offering him before he stuck out his own hand to shake it. "People keep telling me that today but I'm not sure I believe it. I'll take the compliment though."

Richard laughed as he pulled his hand away, "You should take it after all the trouble we've caused you." He paused and smiled thoughtfully, "But you should also know that you are a good man. A better man than most…" He sighed sadly, "Most men in your situation…given the history you have with both Lorelai and Christopher wouldn't have reacted so dignifiedly as you have."

Luke took a deep breath before responding with an honest and clear voice. "I love your Daughter sir. I've realized now that that is never going to change…" He laughed sadly, "Believe me I've tried to change it for years but I can't seem to shake her." He shrugged before looking him directly in the eyes. "And from now on I plan on being there for her just as I was before…no matter what happens between us."

Richard smiled, "And I know you mean what you say Luke. And believe me when I say that gives me great comfort during this difficult time."

Luke smiled back, "I'm glad to help…"

Richard nodded before looking towards the door, "Did I hear someone say something about Danishes?"

Luke laughed at the sudden topic change, "Yeah. They should be here in a few minutes. Lane is dropping them off."

Richard looked up towards the stairs, "I do hope they get here before Emily returns. I haven't had a Danish in ages and she would kill me if she saw me eating one."

Luke laughed again, "Well if she does come down before then I'll make sure to hide one away for later for you."

Richard smiled and clapped the man on the shoulder, "See…you truly are a good man."

Luke just shook his head and walked back to the kitchen to find plates for the food when it arrived. He wasn't sure exactly what was going to happen next or how they would all move past this but he did take comfort in the slight shift in the Gilmores attitude towards him. If he could gain their approval he knew that Lorelai and he could find their way out of this terrible mess. After all, finding their way back to each other would be the easy part, being liked by the Gilmore's had been a feat he never thought he'd live to see… 

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**So what did you think? I hope you liked it :) Let me know! There is much more to come! Write a review and then keep an eye out for the next chapter which is coming soon! Thanks again! :) **


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys, tried to upload this last night but there was some sort of issue so I couldn't. This chapter is a little more intense than the last couple but I hope you like it. I'll try and update soon :) Thanks again for all the feedback! **

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Throughout the rest of the day, Emily never left Lorelai's side making sure she had everything she might possibly need. Her glass was never less than half empty; she made sure she ate as much as she possibly could. She had even sat with Lorelai after her bath and brushed her hair, something she hadn't done since she was a very small child.

At dinner time, Sookie had dropped by with enough food for a small army, which was gladly accepted. Lorelai and Sookie shared a short moment before Lorelai assured her she was being well taken care of and that she could go home to her own family. She thanked Sookie for all that she had done and promised to call her in the morning.

Once all the dishes were finished (by Luke and Emily who seemed to be getting along very nicely) they all retired to the living room. Lorelai looked completely drained as she sat on the couch and watched the people around her talk about anything except her situation.

Rory glanced at her Mother and saw just how tired she looked; taking a deep breath she looked back to her Grandparents. "It's getting late…I'm sure you guys have to get back home."

Richard sat up straighter, "We can stay."

Lorelai looked over at her father and smiled softly, "Dad you've done enough. I'll be fine. I honestly just want to go to bed right now…I'm exhausted."

Richard looked at his wife nervously, "Well…I didn't exactly bring anything with me to sleep in. I suppose we could go home, I could make some more calls there and then in the morning we can come right back."

Emily licked her lips, "Are you sure Lorelai? I can stay. It would be no problem at all."

Lorelai smiled, "I'm sure. You must be tired too…it's been a long day."

Emily stood up and walked over to Lorelai and awkwardly patted her shoulder, "Well alright then. Is there anything we can bring you tomorrow?"

Standing up, Lorelai quickly pulled her aging Mother into her arms and held her tightly, "No Mom. You just being here mean more to me than you could ever know."

Emily held her daughter back and tried not to start to cry again, "Well if you think of anything just call us."

Lorelai smiled and pulled away, "I will."

Emily walked with Rory to the front door as Richard said his own goodbyes with his daughter; he pulled her close and kissed the side of her face. "I love you Lorelai." He whispered so only she could hear him.

Lorelai's eyes burned with tears, "I love you too Dad."

He winked and kissed the top of her head before he followed his wife and Granddaughter out to the driveway. Lorelai closed her eyes as he walked away, trying to compose herself. It had been a hell of a 24 hours and she was beyond exhausted both physically and mentally.

Luke stepped closer to her slowly, "You okay?"

Her eyes blinked open and she licked her lips nervously. "Yeah…yeah I'm good."

He smiled and placed a hand on her arm, "It was nice that they came…"

She lifted her hand and wiped away a few stray tears, "It was nice." She sniffled softly, "And it seems they have taken a liking to you Mister. Especially my Mom…she couldn't stop raving about your coffee."

Luke chuckled, "My coffee does seem to have quite an effect on all the Gilmore Girls."

She laughed slightly, "If we had known that was the secret to her approval that would have saved us a lot of grief a long time ago."

Luke smiled back, "I guess it would have…"

They shared a comfortable silence together for a moment before they heard the front door close again. Rory walked back into the living room and smiled at them both as she stepped up to her mother's side.

"I practically had to beg Grandma to go home." She said with a smile, "She desperately wanted to stay."

Lorelai smirked, "She had Chanel on, she wouldn't have been willing to sleep in that. It would cause to many creases and Lord knows I don't have an ironing board." She said teasingly.

Rory rolled her eyes, "You're unbelievable."

"So they tell me." She said with a smile before she began to yawn again. "God I'm tired…I don't think I have ever been this tired."

Rory rubbed her arm gently before she looked back at Luke, "You know Luke you can run home too if you want. I'm sure you probably have a few things you want to take care of. Mom and I will be fine on our own."

Luke shook his head, "I'm fine."

Lorelai sighed and looked over at him, "Luke I really appreciate it but you can't hide from your life forever. Don't you want to check on the Diner and make sure that Caesar hasn't burnt it down?"

He smiled, "The Diner has run without me before Lorelai…"

"I know." She said with a shrug, "But you kind of just dropped everything and ran. You must be tired too…I know Jackson brought some clothes over for you but still. If you want to run home and shower or something you can…we'll be fine."

"Is this your subtle way of telling me I'm starting to smell?" He asked joking but also feeling slightly nervous at the idea that he might actually smell.

Lorelai laughed and shook her head, "No Luke. I just thought you might need a little time away from the crazy nut house."

He laughed softly before saying sincerely, "I think I've had plenty of time away from the crazy nut house…"

Lorelai looked deep in his eyes and felt her heart skip a beat when she knew what he was really trying to say. She licked her lips nervously and had to look a way from him to keep the tears from falling again.

"It's up to you I guess…whatever you want to do." She said nervously.

Rory smiled at them and then turned back to Luke, "It's really okay Luke. If you just want to run back home for even an hour we'll be all right. I promise I will call you immediately if we need you. But I doubt much will change between now and then…besides the Police are still outside."

Luke took a deep breath and looked through the window to the cop car, "I guess a shower would be kind of nice…"

Rory smiled, "Well okay then. You go do that and I'll just help Mom get ready for bed. I'm sure you won't miss anything to exciting."

He nodded slowly before turning to Lorelai as he placed a gentle hand on her arm, "You sure you'll be okay?"

Lorelai lifted her head to look at him, giving him a tiny smile. "I'll be fine. Just…just come back when you're done okay?"

He smiled back and nodded, "You got it."

Luke smiled at them both before walking around the couch and saying a quick goodbye to Paul Anka before exiting the house. Lorelai sighed and plopped down on the couch again trying to gather her thoughts from the last 24 hours. She felt so overwhelmed and yet at the same time she was beginning to feel a sense of peace rising in her again.

"Can I get you anything?" Rory asked as she sat down next to her.

Lorelai smiled and turned her head as her eyes fluttered open, "No. I'm good." She rubbed her daughters leg, "Besides, you need some rest too sweetie. I might just watch a movie or something until I fall asleep…"

Rory smiled, "Well I can watch with you. Want me to make some popcorn or something?"

Lorelai snuggled into the couch and smiled up at her daughter, "That would be great hun. Thanks."

Rory nodded and then walked towards the kitchen to find some popcorn. She threw it in the microwave and then walked around to find a bowl to put it in. She had just turned around towards the microwave when she heard the back door open. Her eyes lifted and she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw who was standing there.

"Hey kid…" Christopher whispered nervously.

Rory glanced down the hall to where her Mother was waiting for her and she felt her heart start to pound in her chest. "How the hell did you get in here?"

"I saw the cop car and parked a few streets back. Walked through Babette's yard to reach the back door. I just want to talk…" He said as he stepped into the room.

Rory tried to think of how she could get to the police out front without leaving her Mom alone with her Dad again. "You need to leave. Right now."

He sighed and tried to walk closer to her, "Look I know you probably hate me right now and you have every right too. But you have to know how sorry I am."

She could feel the tears burning in her eyes as she stomped closer to him feeling ready to pounce, "You're sorry? You're sorry?" She hissed at him, "How many times have you said those exact words to me over the years Dad?"

He shoved his hands nervously in his pockets, "I don't know…"

"I've forgiven you for a lot of things Dad but this is one thing I will never be able to forgive. You need to get the hell out of here now." She said pointing to the back door.

He shook his head, "Rory I just…I got so upset. I never ever meant to hurt your Mom like that. I would never do that. I'm not that guy-"

"But you did do that and you are that guy." She said glaring at him, "You can't talk your way out of this. Everyone knows what happened, Grandpa is going to make sure you never come near Mom again."

Christopher shook his head again, "Rory your Mom and I can work through this. I know we can."

"No. You can't. And even if Mom wanted to I wouldn't let her." Rory said just as the microwave beeped signaling the popcorn was done.

"Rory, your Mom is a grown woman. She can make her own decisions and I don't think she is going to listen to her kid about relationship advice." He said rolling his eyes.

"Well if you hadn't noticed Dad…I'm a grown woman too and Mom actually values my opinion. She's taken care of me my whole life and now I'm going to take care of her to make sure she doesn't take you back." She said angrily.

"Rory I-" He started to say but was interrupted by Lorelai's voice coming down the hall.

"Hey do you think if we call Luke he will bring over some pie when he comes back? I could really go for some boysenberry pie right now with some of that home made whipped cream he makes…" She said as she walked closer.

Rory looked at her Dad and saw the light in his eyes turn from apologetic to venomous and she felt her heart leap again in her chest. She was really regretting telling Luke to go home because she knew she had no way out of this without someone getting hurt.

"Although he makes really good apple pie too and usually I can get him to melt some cheese on-" Lorelai stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Christopher standing with Rory. "Chris…"

He took a deep angry breath and crossed his arms over his chest, "Wow…how long did it take you to go crawling back to him after I left last night?"

Lorelai felt her hands trembling and she looked over at her daughter, "Rory…come here."

Rory's heart broke when she noticed the fear in her Mother's eyes, "Mom…"

"Just come here…" Lorelai said holding a hand out to her daughter, "Please come over here…"

Rory slowly walked over to her Mom and took her hand to try and steady her. She looked back over at her Father who looked angrier than she had ever seen him. She wondered if this was how he had looked the night before when he had attacked her Mother.

Lorelai watched his eyes trace the bruise on her face and then he relaxed, "Lorelai I'm really sorry and I know that what I did was terrible but I just…I hate that guy."

Lorelai swallowed hard and squeezed her daughter's hand tighter; she didn't seem to be able to find her voice again.

"I hate that you were supposed to marry him and I hate that I feel like a second choice." He said taking a step closer to her.

Rory stuck out her hand and glared at him, "You stay there."

Christopher glanced at his daughter and then back at his wife, "Can you please tell Rory that we need to talk on our own for a minute?"

Rory shook her head fiercely, "No. No way. I'm not leaving her alone with you."

He rolled his eyes, "Rory I'm not going to hurt your Mom."

She leaned closer to him and almost growled at him, "I never thought you would do this in the first place but you did. I'm not going anywhere."

He sighed and looked back at Lorelai, "Fine. Fine. We can have this conversation all together then." He stepped closer to them and ignored the fact that they both tensed up, "Where is Luke now?"

Rory glanced at her Mom and noticed she was still at a loss for words, "He should be back any minute so if I were you I'd walk away now. He's not to happy with you right now and I know that he could take you down."

He laughed bitterly, "Well I'm not so happy with him at the moment either Rory. If you have forgotten your Mother married me. She married ME and not Luke."

Rory shook her head, "She may have said the words but she didn't mean them and you know it. You know she wanted Luke and yet you still went through with it!"

He smirked at his daughter, "If she wanted Luke then why did she come to me that night Rory?"

"Because she was upset and she wasn't thinking clearly. You should have known better than to let her stay and you sure as hell should have known she wasn't ready to jump into a marriage with you." Rory said angrily.

Christopher shook his head; "Your Mom and I have known each other for a very long time Rory. We are your parents and I've always known that we were meant for each other. It's not like we jumped into this after only having known each other for a few weeks." He said rolling his eyes.

"No. Maybe not but it still doesn't mean you are right for each other. And this proves that." She said glancing at her trembling Mother, "How could you do this? How could you hurt her this way?"

"Rory there are certain things you can't understand about your Mother and I, okay? This is between us and not you." He said angrily, "If your Mother wants me to leave she can say it herself. She's a big girl, she doesn't need her daughter making decisions for her."

Rory looked back at her Mom with pleading eyes, "Fine. Mom tell him you want him to leave."

Lorelai swallowed the lump in her throat to try and find her voice, "C-C-Chris…I-I-I think you should go."

"You think I should go or you want me to go?" He asked leaning further into her.

Her breath hitched as she felt his body heat radiating against her own. "I-I-I want you to leave."

Chris stood up and took a deep breath, "Fine." He turned to walk away leaving both Rory and Lorelai in a stunned state but he stopped with his hand on the doorknob as he turned to look at them again. "So what now? What will you do now Lorelai? Have your Daddy hire the best Divorce lawyer he can find and then go back to your Diner man?"

Rory could feel Lorelai beginning to break beside her but she didn't know how to stop what she knew was coming. She felt the anger rising up in her and she wanted to scream at him, throw something, anything at him but she was afraid to leave her Mothers side.

"What are you going to do Lorelai? You going to have Burgers and Fries at your wedding? Will you carry a bottle of ketchup down the aisle with you instead of a bouquet? You gonna have a little baby who only wears flannel and a backwards baseball cap?" He said bitterly.

"Stop it." Rory said with a quivering voice as she heard her Mom begin to cry beside her. "Shut up."

"I mean Jesus Lorelai; you're really going to go back to him now? How fucking long did it take you to call him yesterday? You never answered me when I asked the first time. I'm sure he came running right over because he knew he'd never find anyone else to love him, he's such a loser hiding behind his Diner in this pathetic little town. Is this what you want? The famous Lorelai Gilmore is going to grow old in this ridiculously annoying town?" He said as his voice grew louder and louder.

"Shut up!" Rory yelled as she felt her Mom reach for the counter to hold herself up as the sobs began to wrack through her body.

"Things didn't work out with me so did you lure him into your bed last night like you did with me when you broke up with him? Is that your game?" Chris asked walking back into the kitchen, "Just go from one guy to the next? Or I guess in your case you just shuffle through the few guys that are willing to put up with your crap over and over again hoping one of these times it will work out?"

"Get out of here!" Rory yelled stepping in front of her Mother as he walked closer to them still.

"They were all right about you Lorelai. Everyone. Even back in High School when people knew I was dating you they all said you were no good. They all said I shouldn't waste my time with you but I did and then you got pregnant." He said as he nodded his head towards Rory.

"I'm serious! Get out of here!" Rory yelled as she felt her own tears beginning to burn behind her eyes.

"My Dad put it perfectly…he said you were nothing but a low class slut and you would ruin my life." He said looking around Rory to glare at Lorelai who was cowering behind her daughter as she cried. "I should have listened to him all along."

With those words Rory found her strength and pushed away from her Mom and shoved her Father back. "You shut the hell up! You don't have the right to say such things to her! She is a better person than you will EVER be! She gave up her whole life to take care of me and you could never give me more than a few days out of your precious little life!"

Lorelai watched in horror as her daughter started to pound her small fists against her fathers back as she continued to scream at him. She was so afraid that Christopher was going to snap and push back, that was one thing she didn't think she could handle. But despite the fear she seemed frozen in her spot, she couldn't seem to remember how to move her feet to reach for her daughter or to even run out front to get the police she was completely stuck.

"All I ever wanted was for you love me the way she did and you didn't!" Rory screamed as she continued to pound on his chest and any inch of him she could find. "You never cared! You never cared about either of us! You only care about yourself!"

"Rory…" Lorelai managed to choke out desperately.

"And you don't get to say a damn thing about Luke because he has been a better father than you ever were! He was there for EVERYTHING!" Rory screamed as the tears fell freely down her cheeks.

"Rory no!" Lorelai begged as she stumbled towards her daughter, she was afraid she had gone to far and that Christopher would lash back. "Rory please-"

"He took care of me when I was sick! He went to every ballet recital; he went to my High School graduation and moved me into college! He baked me birthday cakes and made me special coffee when I was cramming for exams! He taught me how to drive when Mom panicked and jumped out of the jeep because she couldn't handle me being 16! He stood by Mom whenever she needed him, he came and fixed things, fed us and protected us when you were too much of a coward to do it like you should have!" She screamed.

"Rory stop." Lorelai whispered as she tripped and grabbed onto her daughter just as she heard the front door open and heard the Police officer shuffle in. "Stop."

Rory let her Mom pull her back as she glared angrily at her father, "I hate you. I hate you so much and I never want to see you again. I wish Luke was my Father and not you! I hate you!"

Lorelai held Rory tightly as she watched the cop walk around Christopher and grasp his arms. "Shh…" She whispered in Rory's ears, "Shhh…breathe Rory breathe…"

"Are you Christopher Hayden?" The police officer asked, Chris only nodded he couldn't speak as he kept is eyes on his wife and daughter. "Christopher Hayden you are under arrest for assault and battery on Lorelai Gilmore. You have the right to an attorney-"

"I got it." Chris said as he put his hands behind his back, the cop pulled out his handcuffs and began to click them into place as Chris looked back at Lorelai, "I hope you and the Burger Boy are very happy together."

Lorelai and Rory watched as the Cop walked Christopher around them, through the kitchen and out the front door. Together they stood holding one another as they shook and cried trying to make sense of what had just happened. When the second officer walked in, Rory managed to pry herself from her mothers grasp and walked over to him to listen to what he had to say. Lorelai was vaguely aware of the fact that he was talking to Rory as she looked around her kitchen. Once again she felt incredibly uncomfortable and unsafe in her own home and she wanted to run.

After a few moments, Rory walked back over to her Mother and put a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I'm-I'm sorry I just…I saw him there and I got so angry and I couldn't stop myself-"

Lorelai snapped out of her daze and looked directly at her daughter, she reached out and pulled her up against her. "I love you Rory. I love you so much I just…I was so scared he was going to hurt you. God…"

Rory held her mother closer, "I'm okay Mom. I'm okay…we're both okay. We will both be okay. I promise…"

Lorelai started shaking again as Christopher's words began to wash over her again, "I have to get out of here…I can't stay here…"

Rory pulled away and tried to wipe her Mothers tears away, "Okay…come on."

She walked her Mom over to the kitchen table and sat her down. Lorelai watched her nervously as she ran down the hall and up to her bedroom. A few minutes later she came back down with a bag and Paul Anka at his side on his leash.

Lorelai stared at her for a moment and Rory just held her hand out to her, "Come on Mom."

Without asking where they were going, Lorelai stood up and took her hand and let her lead her out to the car. She felt Paul Anka jump onto her lap but she didn't even flinch. She heard the roar of the car engine as Rory turned the key and she watched in a blur as they pulled out of the driveway. A wave of nausea rolled over her and she had to closer her eyes to keep from falling apart again.

She buried her face in Paul Anka's fur and tried to keep the tears from falling down but she knew she couldn't. When the car stopped, Rory quickly jumped out and walked around to the other side to open her Mothers door. Paul Anka quickly jumped down and Lorelai let her daughter pull her out of the car. Through blurry eyes she was able to see that they were parked in the alley behind the Diner and she felt her eyes burn even more.

Rory wrapped her arm around her Mom and led her and Paul Anka towards the back door, which she knew would be open. She had seen Caesar's car out front and knew he would be getting ready to close up but she wanted to avoid him at all costs. She walked her mother down the dark hallway and up the stairs towards Luke's apartment.

She could hear her Mom begin to cry again as she lifted her hand to knock on the door. When Luke finally opened the door, Rory could see the fear and confusion was over his face.

"I was just coming back…what happened?" He asked as he stepped aside to let them into the small apartment.

Lorelai didn't even look at Luke; she pulled Paul Anka's leash from Rory and led him over to Luke's bed. She fell down in a heap of emotion and began to cry as Luke watched anxiously from beside her daughter.

"Dad came back…" Rory whispered as he her bottom lip trembled.

"What?" Luke whipped around and glared at Rory, "Where is he? What the hell did he do?"

Rory shook her head and wiped her tears away, "He didn't touch her." She sniffled, "He snuck in the back door, he said he parked a few streets away and walked through Babette's yard…"

Luke put a hand on Rory's shoulder, "I knew I shouldn't have left. I'm so sorry Rory. I'm so sorry. I let you down again."

Rory's heart broke as she heard her Mother's sob fill the room, "We started arguing…he just kept yelling at her about you and I begged him to stop."

"Did he hurt you?" Luke asked anxiously as he looked her over trying to find any sign of a bruise or mark on her.

Rory shook her head and looked back at her Mother, "Mom…" She sighed and stepped over to her as she sat down on the bed next to her and rubbed her back gently, "I'm so sorry Mom. I'm so sorry…"

Lorelai didn't move as she held Paul Anka close and cried into his fur. Rory reached down and pulled the blanket that was folded at the bottom of the bed up and over her. She stood up and pulled her Mom's shoes off and threw them on the ground before she walked back over to Luke.

"I'm sorry we came here like this…I just didn't know what to do." She hiccupped as the tears continued to fall. "She just wanted to feel safe and I knew she would feel safe here…"

Luke shook his head and looked back at Lorelai before he pulled Rory over to the couch to sit her down. He wanted to pull Lorelai into his arms and hold her until she stopped crying but he also knew he had to hear what had happened.

He put his hands on Rory's shoulders and leaned his head down to get a better look at her, "What did he say Rory?"

She sighed and wiped her tears away, "He just kept asking her if she was going to go back to you now…He said she was pathetic and would be stuck in this stupid town forever. He-he-he" She let out a strangled breath before whispering, "He told her everyone was right about her all along…he said she was a slut."

Luke felt the bile in the back of his throat, he wanted to run and find Christopher and pound him into the ground. It didn't matter what it would mean to his custody case with April. He needed to get to him and make sure that he never ever hurt Lorelai or Rory again.

"Rory try and take a deep breath…" He managed to get out somehow.

Rory shook her head and swiped at her eyes again, "He said all the things she's always been afraid of…I could feel her breaking beside me and I just lost it. I started screaming at him and hitting him over and over again about how much I hated him. About how much I wished you were my Father instead of him and he just stood there…he just stood there and took it. He didn't even try and tell me he loved me or that he was sorry he just-"

Luke sighed and pulled her up against his side and rubbed her back, "Rory stop…you need to stop. It's okay…"

She clung to his flannel shirt and tried to stop the tears from falling, "And then the cop was there arresting him and he was just gone…it all happened so fast."

Luke felt relief wash over him when he heard her say that Christopher was arrested. "I never should have left…I knew better. This is my fault…"

Rory whimpered and pulled back, "No…it's not. I thought we would be okay. I didn't think he would come back…"

Luke sighed and stood up to walk towards the kitchen, he found a box of tissues and brought it over to her. "He can't hurt either of you now. He's in custody okay? And I refuse to leave your side again even if your Mom tells me I start to smell." He said trying to make her smile.

Rory let out a soft laugh as she blew her nose, "Luke…"

"He won't hurt you again…" Luke said trying to assure himself more than her.

Rory took a few deep breaths to calm herself before she looked over at the trembling body in Luke's bed as she began to talk again. "I have never questioned whether my Mom loved me or not. I've always known she loved me…I've always known she never regretted me even though she had me so young…"

"Of course she doesn't regret you. You know you are the best thing that ever happened to her." Luke said sincerely.

Rory smiled trough her tears as she turned back to him. "I know. But I also know how difficult it's been for her…and I don't just mean how hard it was to raise me on her own at such a young age."

"Well then what-" He started to say as he shifted in his seat.

"I mean I know how hard it has been for her to deal with the way people talk about her. I always used to pretend that I didn't hear or see the whispers when Mom and I were around new people. I wasn't pretending for me…I was pretending for her because I knew how embarrassed she would get." Rory said sniffling again.

"She wasn't embarrassed by you…" Luke whispered to her.

Rory shook her head, "No. Not by me. Of herself. She was embarrassed to be that girl…the one people had to always talk about. She never thought she was good enough because people were always talking about her…that's where all her insecurities came from. And tonight he stood there and said everything she has always been afraid of…"

"God Rory I-" He said as he looked over at Lorelai.

"The bruises…" Rory said as more tears began to fall, "Those will fade but the words…the horrible things he said will stay with her forever. He reaffirmed everything she thought of herself and I'm not sure she will be able to get past it…"

Luke watched the rise and fall of Lorelai's shoulders as she clung to Paul Anka for dear life. For as long as he had known her he had watched her try and be the strongest woman in the world. And in reality she was the strongest woman he had ever known. She had been through more than most people but she always came back standing taller than before.

But despite that, he knew deep down Lorelai was an incredibly insecure person. He knew she was afraid that people looked at her differently because she had been a teenage mother. He knew she worked so hard to make sure that they saw more than the choices she had made as a teenager. It broke his heart to know that she couldn't see just how amazing she was, not only as a mother but also as a friend and businesswoman.

Suddenly Rory stood up and began to walk towards his apartment door, "I need to call my Grandpa. He told me to call if anything happened…and now that the cops have him in custody we will need that Lawyer sooner rather than later."

Luke stood up and followed her towards the door, "Right. Okay."

Rory stopped at the door and turned back to him, "Will you stay with her? I don't want her to be alone…I know this might be awkward to have her in your bed and I'll help you move her later. I just didn't-"

Luke shook his head and put a reassuring hand on her arm, "You aren't going anywhere. Neither of you."

Rory's lip began to tremble as she nodded, "I told him I wished you were my Father." She wiped at the few tears that fell again and smiled sadly, "I have never meant anything more in my life Luke. I really do wish it was you…" She paused before continuing, "But the more I think about it…he may be my father by blood but you did all the things he was supposed to do. You were more of a father to me than he ever was Luke…"

Luke swallowed the lump in his throat, "I wish I was your Dad too Rory…"

She smiled softly before turning again to walk out into the hallway to call Richard and Emily. Luke took a deep breath before walking through his apartment and over to his bed where Lorelai was still lying. He watched as Paul Anka lifted his head and whined, he knew he hated it when Lorelai cried. When she had been fighting with Rory after they first got him, Luke would often come home to find Lorelai crying in bed with Paul Anka at her side, his head resting on her legs as he whimpered along with her.

Luke smiled and leaned down to pat his head as he sat down beside them. "Lorelai…" He whispered to her.

After a few moments, she finally moved her face to look at him, her eyes were red and puffy and the bruise on her cheek looked agitated from being pressed against Paul Anka. "I'm sorry Luke, I'm sorry…" She managed to choke out.

Luke sighed and pulled himself up onto the bed, he leaned against the headboard and pulled Lorelai up beside him. He rested her head against his stomach and began to rub her back in soothing circles.

He felt her begin to relax against him as he held her close but the tears continued to fall, "Lorelai you have nothing to apologize for…"

She whimpered and pulled away just slightly just enough so she could see his face, "But…but Christopher was right."

Luke shook his head quickly and leaned down to her, "God no. No he wasn't right Lorelai. Not at all…"

Her lip trembled as he spoke, "But that night…that night when I left the Diner I went there. I went to him and I slept with him with your ring on my finger."

Luke grimaced and cleared his throat, "Lorelai-"

"And I married him because I was afraid even though I loved you. And then when things didn't work out with him I came running to you…I'm a horrible person." She said as the tears soaked into Luke's pillow.

"Lorelai we talked about this. We both made mistakes and yes it does hurt that you went to him that night but I know it is because I pushed you to him." Luke said leaning down to push her hair out of her face as they stuck to her tear soaked cheeks. "And you didn't come running Rory came and I would be there no matter what, you have to know that."

She lifted her hand to cling to his arm, "I'm horrible Luke. I don't deserve to have you here with me. I shouldn't be in your bed letting you comfort me…I deserved this."

Luke sighed and leaned down over her to cup her cheek, "Stop. Please stop. You did not deserve this. Christopher is a coward and he doesn't deserve you. I don't deserve you."

"This is all my fault." She pushed him away and sat up on his bed making Paul Anka scoot closer to her sensing her pain. "I did this."

Luke stood up and walked around the car and sat down beside her again, "Lorelai please…"

"I have tried for so long to prove to everyone I am more than what they see. And I tried to hard that I screwed it all up more than I already had. I know what people think of me…teenage mother…some stupid girl who got knocked up on her parents balcony." She said as she leaned forward and continued to sob.

"Screw those people Lorelai. Why do you care what people think? The people that really love you don't think that, they know how amazing you are. I know how amazing you are." He said trying to plead with her as he pulled her close.

Lorelai shook her head, "I let you come over and fix things, feed me and Rory for years. I let you be there for it all because I was selfish because I needed you but I was to afraid to admit it."

"Lorelai please…" He whispered reaching out to rub her arm. "Please stop…"

"I am so screwed up that I ruin every good thing that happens to me. I hurt everyone I care about. I can't make anything work out because I am so freaking screwed up and I always have been." She wailed into her hands.

Luke stood up and knelt down in front of her, he pulled her hands away from her face and tried to make her look at him. "Lorelai stop it. Stop this right now. Do you hear yourself? Do you? Do you hear what you are saying?"

"Luke I'm a terrible person…why? Why are you here trying to help? Why?" She said staring up at hi in disbelief.

"Because I love you." He said simply trying to get her to understand.

"But why?" She sobbed, "Why? How could you love someone like me? I am horrible."

Luke shook his head adamantly, "Do you know what I thought when I saw you for the first time?" She continued to cry and refused to answer so he spoke again, "I thought you were the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. I mean yeah you were driving me crazy because I was so busy at the Diner and you wouldn't leave me the hell alone but I remember thinking…how is it possible for someone to be that beautiful?"

She whimpered and shook her head trying to pull away form him, "Luke-"

"And then I got to know you and I realized you were a single Mother. I couldn't believe how hard you worked for your daughter. And you never ever complained…I remember all the nights you refused to eat because you could only afford to feed Rory." He said grasping her hands in his, "Sometimes I used to have to beg you to eat because you were always to proud to not pay. I watched you work your ass off, day and night to support Rory. And you still found time to make dresses for the school plays, and volunteer for all of Taylor's stupid town festivals."

"Luke please…" She whispered again looking away from him.

"You are always the first person to step up when someone needs help. You push me Lorelai…I used to hate it or at least I thought I did but now I realize it scared me. You pushed me to be better. You made me do all that crazy town stuff and I complained about it but I really actually loved it because it meant I got to do it with you." He said searching her tear filled eyes, "If I got to be closer to you at anytime doing anything I wanted to do it…I needed to do it. Don't you know how long I've been in love with you?"

"But you shouldn't…" Lorelai whimpered again, "I don't deserve you."

Luke sighed again, "Don't you know just how amazing you are? Don't you know how much you deserve?"

"I cheated on you…and then I married him and let him think I loved him. But I loved you…every time he touched me I pretended it was you." She laughed sadly, "What kind of person does that?"

"The kind of person who has been hurt…" Luke whispered to her, "I know that now. I was angry before…and it still hurts to think about but I know I screwed up too. No one is perfect Lorelai. No one…but no one deserves this. Especially not you."

Lorelai took a deep breath before sitting up straight to look at him, "But I want to be perfect for you…"

Luke sat up on his knees more and pulled her hands up to his lips to kiss, "You are perfect Lorelai. You've always been perfect…that's why I was too afraid to tell you how I felt for all those years. You're everything I've ever wanted I just never knew how to say it…"

She sighed as her tears started to subside, "He was standing there saying everything that I had been afraid of my whole life and I just…I couldn't even fight back."

"I know…" He whispered as he lifted his arms to rub her arms, "I never should have left…I'm so sorry."

"And then I was so afraid when Rory started to yell at him…I was so afraid he would hurt her but I couldn't move. It was like my feet were stuck in quick sand…I couldn't get her and I was so afraid…" She said shaking her head as the tears burned again.

Luke stood up and kicked his shoes off; he pushed her back on the bed and lay down beside her. "Shh…no one is going to hurt you or Rory ever again. No one."

"I'm so sorry Luke…I'm so sorry for all of it." She mumbled against his chest as he held her close. "I'm so sorry…"

Luke wrapped his hand in her hair and kissed the top of her head, "I know. I'm sorry too. But we will figure this out Lorelai…we'll figure this out. Chris is in custody now and he can't get to you or Rory again…"

"Please don't leave…" She whispered against him, "I can't do this without you. I'm just so tired but…I can't do it all without you. I need you…"

Luke pulled her even closer and kissed her head again, "I'm not going anywhere Lorelai. Never again…"

Lorelai breathed him in and tried to relax, as she felt him run his hands through her hair she felt herself finally succumb to sleep. She gave her whole body over to him as he held her close, whispering words of comfort and love to her. His voice was finally drowning out the words that Christopher had said to her and she tried to believe what Luke had said about her.

Lorelai didn't even hear the apartment door open again as Rory walked in. Luke glance over at the young girl and tried to smile as he felt Lorelai's breath even out against his chest letting him know she was finally asleep.

"Is she okay?" Rory whispered softly.

Luke shook his head as he continued to run his hands through her hair, "No. But she will be. I promise."

Rory nodded slowly, "Grandma and Grandpa are coming back first thing in the morning. He's talking to his lawyer right now…" She watched as Luke just nodded her his head not wanting to disturb Lorelai, "I uh…I really don't want to go back to the house and I-"

Luke smiled at her, "I don't think April would mind if you slept in her bed."

Rory swallowed hard, "How did this all happen?"

He sighed. "I don't know Rory…"

She nodded sadly and looked down at her Mother, "I just…I hate to see her like this."

"I know. But she's going to be okay…we're all going to be okay." Luke tried to reassure her.

Rory smiled and then turned on her heel and walked over to April's bed. She didn't even bother to change into the clothes that she had packed for herself. She kicked off her shoes and pulled back the covers just as Paul Anka jumped up on the bed to comfort her. She smiled and pulled the dog close as she looked over at the large bed and watched as Luke continued to soothe her sleeping mother. She felt drained, physically and emotionally and prayed that this would all be behind them as soon as possible.

She wanted to see her Mother happy again…and she knew the only way that would be possible would be if she was able to move on with her life with Luke. She just hoped that her father's words wouldn't hold her back any longer, she had punishing herself for her mistakes for long enough. It was finally time for her to truly be happy…

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it. I will be kind of busy with Easter and visiting family but I will do my best to update as soon as possible! Thanks! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey guys! I'm so sorry it's been a week since I updated! I've been so crazy busy I haven't had time to write or upload anything. I promise I will try harder this week and hopefully I'll have another chapter up within the next few days. I hope you like this chapter. Thanks for your patience! **

* * *

Lorelai woke with a jump, her dreams showed nothing but Christopher in her kitchen yelling at her and Rory. For a moment she thought she was still there but when her eyes finally fluttered open she realized where she was. And in a strange way…she wished she was still in her kitchen even if it meant that Christopher would be there yelling at her again.

Being in this bed…in _his _bed brought up to many memories that hurt more than the bruises on her face. The smell of him started to envelope her and the tears began to prickle in her eyes again. She remembered that first night when he had held her so gently she felt like he was afraid she would break. She remembered the way it had felt as he laid her down before him and worshiped each and every part of her body until she couldn't take anymore. She remembered how safe she had felt in his arms, like nothing and no one could eve come between them.

It had all seemed to perfect then, she had been so sure it would work and then somehow it had all gone wrong. So terribly wrong…And now here she was lying in his bed alone and left to try and drown out the terrible memories of what was really going on in her life. She wanted to go back…she wanted to start over with him and make sure she never let him go again but she knew it was impossible. There was no going back…not from any of this.

She pulled herself up slowly and let her eyes adjust to the light in his room, she turned and saw Rory asleep in April's bed with Paul Anka at her side. He lifted his head slowly and she saw the slight wag of his tail when she realized that she too was awake. The soft sounds in the kitchen caught her attention and she turned to see Luke filling a cup of coffee before turning and smiling slightly when he saw her.

He turned back to Rory to check and make sure she was still asleep before he walked over to his bed and sat down beside Lorelai. He watched her swallow the lump in her throat before he handed her the mug and lifted his still warm hand and smoothed some hair out of her face.

"Did I wake you?" He whispered softly.

She leaned into his touch and shook her head as she pulled the mug closer to her chest, inhaling the heavenly aroma. "No…Bad dream."

He nodded once and let his hand fall from her face, "You were crying a lot in your sleep…"

She licked her lips and turned her head away from him, "Luke I'm so sorry…" She chocked out softly as she placed the mug on the bedside table.

He shook his head, "Don't…"

She whimpered softly and took a ragged breath, "I can't…I can't keep doing this to you. It's not right. It's not fair…and it makes Christopher right…"

He winced at the sound of her voice, "What do you mean he's right? Lorelai we talked about this last night…"

She sighed and reached up to wipe the fresh tears away from her face, "It's like these past few months I've been only been living a half life. Since the day I met you Luke I needed you…I counted on you and went to you for everything."

"Lorelai…" He whispered wanting to pull her into his arms again but worrying he would scare her off.

"And it wasn't right…it wasn't fair to you. Not then and not now Luke…" She sniffled as she pulled her legs up to her chest and hugging them tight, "It's not right…"

Luke let her words sink in for a moment before reaching a strong but gentle hand out to her arm, "Don't you know that I would do anything for you? Then and now?"

She tilted her head, resting her cheek against the top of her knees, "Yes…"

"Things are really screwed up right now…I know that. Not just about this thing with Christopher but with how things ended between us." He paused and laughed sadly, "Although they never really ended…not for me…"

"Luke…" She whispered licking her lips nervously.

"But I'm here. I'm here Lorelai and I'm not going anywhere. I told you yesterday, I let you go once and I'm not going to do it again." He said honestly hoping she would understand just how sincere he was.

She sniffled again and looked up at him through her heavy eyelids, "I need you to know something…"

He rubbed her arm with his thumb gently, "What?"

She took a nervous breath before continuing, "That night…"

He shook his head, "Lorelai I don't want to talk about you and him-"

She lifted her hand to grab his other hand, "Just please…please listen to me. I need to say this. I need you to understand and then we'll never talk about it again if that's what you want…I swear."

Hearing the desperation in her voice made him give in, he sighed and nodded slowly, "Okay…"

She licked her lips again and scooted closer to him, "I didn't…I didn't mean for that to happen. My head…it was all screwed up and everything hurt. I was so screwed up Luke and I just…I needed to feel something…anything that would take my mind off of you."

He grimaced again, "Lorelai I don't know-"

She shook her head and gripped him again, "I was so afraid to be alone. If I was alone I knew…I knew I'd fall apart and I didn't think I would survive if I did, if I really let myself understand what was happening I knew I wouldn't get back up…"

He thought back to that night, the look of desperation and fear on her face had scared him and yet he still couldn't understand just how much she had been hurting, "I should have-"

"I just needed to feel anything other than that pain…" She sighed and pulled her arm back again, holding her legs tightly feeling a slight shiver run through her spine. "I thought…afterwards I'd be okay but God…" She heard the sob in her throat and she hated the way she sounded, "It hurt so much more than I thought was humanly possible…" She ignored the pained look on his face and absently wiped the tears from her face away, "And then you were there at my house saying all these things and I just wanted you to hold me…I wanted to go with you and pretend none of it had happened…but I knew I couldn't do that to you."

He watched her lift her head to look at him and he cleared his throat when he felt her pause, "When you told me what happened…I thought someone had literally sliced my heart out Lorelai…"

Her lip trembled and she nodded, "I know…I could see it on your face. I kept telling myself you hurt me first…but it didn't help. God I hated myself…I've never hated myself more than in that moment Luke and you will never know how sorry I am."

He shifted slightly and ignored the dull ache in his chest, "I should have seen how much you were hurting before that Lorelai…I should have known."

"You had a lot going on in your life…" She whispered softly.

He shook his head and scooted closer to her so that his knee touched her shin, "But you were just trying to help me and I pushed you away…" He watched her stare intently at him and he continued, "But I need you to know it wasn't because I didn't love you. I was just scared Lorelai…I was scared and ashamed." He sighed and shook his head to try and rid the fears that had pushed them to this place in the first place, "I was scared you would see me differently…I was afraid you would compare me to Christopher because I wasn't there for my kid…"

She shook her head quickly, "God no Luke. I could never think that! You didn't know about April…it was a completely different situation."

He nodded slowly, "I know that now. I know you wouldn't have looked at me like that but I just…I needed to make sure it was all perfect for you. I wanted it to be perfect for you Lorelai…"

She smiled weakly at him, "Luke…out of all the crazy messed up things in my life you were always the closest thing to perfection I ever had. The good bad and the ugly…you were perfect to me…" She shrugged sadly, "You loved me when no one else did…you loved all of me even when I was at my worst you loved me."

Luke smiled at her, "I tried to deny it ya know…deny my feelings for as long as I could. I always thought you deserved better…"

She shook her head, "I wanted you Luke. But I didn't deserve you…I never did and I still don't."

"You didn't deserve to be treated the way I treated you in the end…" He shook his head, "You need to know that. You deserve so much better."

She nodded slowly, "I know. But you deserved more than me going to Christopher…"

He laughed sadly, "We always did have a problem with communication you and I…"

She laughed back, "I guess so…you'd think somewhere in those 8 years before we got together one of us would have cracked and admitted our feelings."

He smiled, "You would think…"

She sighed again and let her knees down and curled them underneath her, "But still…I just need you to know that me marrying him…"

He sighed again and shook his head, "It's okay don't-"

She pushed on despite his protests, "I didn't love him Luke…I need you to know that I didn't love him. It wasn't about love…"

He stared at her for a moment before responding, "Then what was it about?"

She sighed, "It was about not being alone…because if I was alone I had to think about how badly it all got screwed up. I'd have to think about how I would never be with you again and I couldn't do it…it was killing me Luke. It was literally killing me…"

"When I saw the ring on your finger that day at the hospital…" He sighed, "I just couldn't believe it…"

"I know. I never wanted you to find out that way…" She paused before laughing sadly, "Actually I never wanted you to find out because then I had to admit what I had done to myself…"

They sat in silence for a moment before he spoke again, "I meant what I said that day…"

She cocked her head to the side and glanced up at him, "What?"

"My life doesn't mean anything if you're not there…if I'm not sharing it with you nothing matters." He whispered honestly.

She smiled at him and reached for his hand, "I know what you mean…"

He reveled in the feel of her soft fingers rubbing his hand gently, "What a fine mess we have created here Miss Gilmore…" He said with a chuckle.

She swallowed the lump in her throat, "Do you think you can ever forgive me?"

He leaned forward slowly and kissed her forehead, "I forgave you a long time ago Lorelai…"

He pulled away only enough to cup her face in his hands and stroke her cheek, "You did?" She questioned.

Luke nodded slowly, "I did. But I couldn't forgive myself for letting you down…after all we had been through…after waiting all that time to be with you I screwed it up royally and I hated myself. I still do…"

She leaned into his touch and breathed him in, "You shouldn't. We both made mistakes. We're only human Luke…it's what we do. We make mistakes…people make mistakes and they learn from them."

He nodded slowly and let his finger glide along the outline of the bruise still dark on her face, "I guess so…"

She sighed and reached her hand up to cover his against her cheek, "Luke…" She licked her lips again and scooted closer to him, "I just…I don't know what happens next…"

He nodded slowly, letting his other hand tangle in her hair. "I know…"

"But I just…I need to figure this all out." She whispered as she searched his eyes hopefully, "I know I love you. I love you so much…more than I ever thought it was possible to love someone…"

"Lorelai…" He whispered with a strained voice. "I-"

"I just…I need to fix this mess before I can…" She paused and sighed slightly, "Before we can…" She stopped herself again and looked deep into his eyes, "I mean…that is if you even want too try and fix this…"

He leaned his forehead against hers and willed himself to not kiss her, he knew she wasn't ready. "I need you in my life Lorelai…"

She felt another tear slide down her bruised cheek but she tried to ignore it, "Can we do this? Can we fix this? Can we fix us?"

He pulled her closer, still trying to respect her space but needing to feel her against him again. "Yes. We can. I know we can."

Her hands trembled as she held him close, "It's not fair to ask you to wait anymore than you already have…but I think I need too."

He nodded slowly, "I know…and it's okay. We can't rush this Lorelai…we need to do this right this time around. I won't let it fall apart again…"

She sighed happily and pulled away only so she could look at Rory, "She must be exhausted…"

Luke followed her gaze and nodded, "Yeah. She seemed to pass out after she talked to your parents last night."

She groaned, "I don't want to face it all. I feel safe here with you and Rory…I want to stay here and pretend it all didn't happen."

He nodded and turned back to her, "I know you do. But you know that you can't…"

She smiled weakly, "I know." She paused and looked at the clock and saw that it was still very early. "But maybe…maybe for just a little longer can we hide? Just hold me? And then…then I'll face it all."

He smiled softly and nodded, "Of course."

She let him lead her towards the top of the bed and lay her down beside him. She felt him wrap his arm around her, pulling her up against his chest and she clung to his shirt tightly. The scent of him, the feel of him holding her here in this bed would have scared her the night before or even right when she woke up. But hearing his words, feeling him against her she knew he meant what he had said. She knew he meant it when he told her he wanted to be with her and she knew that that was all she needed to get through this…

As long as she had Luke and Rory…the rest would fall into place.

* * *

An hour later, Lorelai woke up again and reached out hoping to find Luke beside her. She whimpered softly when she found the space beside her empty and she sat up quickly, afraid that he had changed his mind again. She calmed only slightly when she saw Rory walking towards her with a plate of food and another coffee mug.

"Good morning sleepy…" She whispered as she sat down beside her.

Lorelai smiled and took in the sight of her grown daughter, "Hey kid…how you doing? Did you sleep okay?"

Rory smiled, "Yeah. Paul Anka kept me company…kept the nightmares at bay."

She smiled and looked around the apartment, "He's a pretty good companion when he wants to be." She paused and frowned, "Where is he anyway? And where's Luke?"

"He took him for a walk." Rory said setting the plate and mug on the bedside table.

Lorelai snorted, "How did Paul Anka manage to get the collar and leash around Luke's neck? That's something I'd like to see! I bet Miss Patty and Babette are taking pictures as we speak and coming up with all sorts of dirty jokes…"

Rory rolled her eyes, "Mom…"

She laughed, "Sorry…gotta keep the humor or else I remember the pain…"

Rory nodded slowly and reached for the plate of food again, "You should eat something…"

Lorelai sighed and reached for a piece of bacon before popping it in her mouth, "I'm sorry you had to see all that last night…I'm sorry you had to hear it."

Rory frowned sadly, "It's okay Mom…I'm glad I was there. I didn't want you alone with him. And besides…I had to see him at some point."

She chewed her bacon for a few more moments before letting her arm fall beside her again, "You know kid…I uh…I want you to know that you are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me."

Rory swallowed the lump in her throat feeling the ache in her chest rise again, "Mom you don't have too-"

She sniffled and silenced her daughter, "I mean when I found out I was pregnant I won't pretend it wasn't a shock. I won't pretend that I wasn't terrified but…" She paused and lifted her head to smile through her tears, "But when those doctors handed you to me for that first time…my whole life changed for the better."

"Mom…" Rory whimpered softly.

"And I just…I always wanted to make sure that your life was as good as it could possibly be. And I know I made a lot of mistakes and I'm sorry for that…" Lorelai said in a chocked whisper.

Rory shook her head, "You gave me an amazing life Mom. The best life. You have to know that."

"But I wish I could have given you more…I wish I could have given you the whole package." She whispered as she closed her tear filled eyes tightly.

Rory sighed and reached for her arm, "I didn't need Dad…I had you. And you were more than enough."

Lorelai smiled sadly, "But it would have been nice for you to have him in your life. More than he was anyway…"

Rory shrugged and squeezed her Mother's hand, "Sure. But Dad made his choices Mom. You always made it clear that if he wanted a relationship with me he could have one. He had his chances…and he blew them all. I mean there were times when I thought about it…about what it would be like if we were all together but then he'd show up and make promises before riding off on his motorcycle again and I'd remember I didn't need him because I had you…"

"Doesn't mean it didn't hurt…" Lorelai whispered.

Rory shook her head, "No. It doesn't. But it's okay Mom. I'm okay…And so are you. We're both going to be okay…"

She nodded slowly before responding again, "I just want you to know that if you decide you still want him in your life now I will be okay with that."

Rory shook her head adamantly, "No. That's not even an option anymore Mom. Dad has done a lot of crappy things but this is unforgivable."

Lorelai sighed and pushed on, "I don't condone what your father did. And if any man ever laid a hand on you like that I would kill him. But…this wasn't all him kid. I made some pretty big mistakes this last year…things that I can never change."

Rory nodded, "Maybe…but it still doesn't make what he did okay. If he was hurt or angry with you than he could have found another way to express that."

Lorelai nodded, "I know but…"

Rory shook her head more forcefully this time and grasped her Mother's hand as tight as she could, "No. No buts Mom. It doesn't matter what you did or didn't do. Dad has known you for a long time Mom…he knows you well enough to know that you weren't ready for all of this. He knew you still loved Luke and he knew you were vulnerable…I'm not saying he didn't want to be with you or he didn't love you because I think he did…" She shrugged, "But I think that he used your break up with Luke to his advantage because he knew you were hurting and wouldn't want to be alone…it was the perfect time to sweep you off your feet."

"I guess but I-" Lorelai tried again.

Rory shifted so she was looking her Mother straight in the eyes, "Dad knew you still loved him Mom. He knew it and he was afraid of it…he knew that somewhere down the road those feelings would come to the surface again and he panicked. When he saw that letter he knew in his heart he could never compete with what you and Luke have and he snapped. But he knew Mom…I know how knew…he's not stupid. He's just a real coward…he always has been. He was to afraid to make a commitment back then and this time he was to afraid to accept that you weren't what he wanted."

Lorelai smiled through the tears and reached out to stroke Rory's hair, "How the hell did you get so smart kid? I've always wondered that…"

"Well I had a pretty great Mom who made sure I could have access to everything and anything I would ever need or want in life." Rory said smiling, "Most of what I have learned never came from books Mom…it all came from you."

Lorelai felt the dam break and didn't even try to wipe the tears away as she pulled her daughter as close as possible, "I love you kid. I love you so much."

Rory felt her own tears burning in her eyes as she held her mother back, "I love you too Mom. Everything is going to be okay…I promise."

They sat together on Luke's bed holding each other, no more words needed to be spoken. They both knew that they would find a way through this just as they found a way through everything else in their life. Together.

When the apartment door finally opened again and the soft pitter patter of Paul Anka's paws pulled them apart, Lorelai wiped her tears away and smiled at Luke who stood in the doorway, not wanting to interrupt them.

"He missed you you know…" Lorelai whispered as Paul Anka jumped up on the bed and licked her face.

Luke smiled and leaned against the doorframe, "Well I missed him too." He paused and then said, "I missed all three of you crazy Gilmore's…"

Rory smiled, "We are pretty loveable."

Luke rolled his eyes and walked into the apartment, letting the door close softly behind him. "Apparently so."

Rory beamed up at him, "Oh come on admit it Luke. The day Mom and I wanted into the Diner you know you were a gonner…"

Luke chuckled as he stood at the foot of his bed smiling at the two women that had stolen his heart so many years earlier. "I don't have to admit it Rory. You both know that's true…hell the whole town knows its true."

"Well I wish someone would have explained it to me sooner." Lorelai said with a playful pout.

Rory rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to her Mother, "Its not like we all didn't try. Babette, Miss Patty and Sookie dropped hint after hint for years. And if I remember correctly even Grandma mentioned it a few dozen times…"

Lorelai stuck her chin up in the air and huffed, "I don't know what you are talking about…"

Rory groaned and stood up, "You're impossible." She turned back to Luke and put her hands on her hips, "I don't know what you've seen in her all of these years."

Luke shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest, "I haven't been able to figure that out myself…"

Lorelai scoffed and stared up at the two most important people in her life. "Hey! I take offense to that Mister! You both know that I am pretty freaking amazing."

Rory shrugged, "Yeah but if we admit that than we will never live it down."

Lorelai pouted again and lay back on the bed, pulling Paul Anka closer to her, "You are both terribly mean to me. I don't know why I put up with you two!"

"Probably because we are the only two people on the planet that tolerate your crazy." Rory said jutting her hip out slightly with a smirk on her face.

"Well if I'm crazy then you're crazy because you are a byproduct of me." She said pointing at her daughter, "And he's crazy because he has no relation to me but still chooses to keep me in his life." She said nodding her head towards Luke.

Rory nodded slowly, "Yes. That does make him the craziest of all of us."

Luke snorted and looked back at Rory, "How do you figure?"

"Because like Mom said…you had no obligation at all to stick with us and yet you did. I had to claim her because she's my Mom but you…" She said pointing a finger at him, "You claimed her because you actually wanted her!"

Luke laughed, "Well then I guess I am crazy…"

Rory smirked at him, "Crazy in love…" She mocked.

Luke groaned and turned away from them, "God you are so much like her it's scary…"

"But that's why you love me too Luke!" Rory said smiling after him as Lorelai laughed from her spot on the bed, "You love the crazy!"

"God help me I do…" He said shaking his head as he walked back to the kitchen and put some eggs on a plate for Paul Anka.

Rory smiled again and looked back at her Mom, the bruise was still there on her face but underneath she was finally starting to see her old Mom again. "See…I told you we were going to be okay…"

Lorelai turned her head to smile at her daughter, she reached for her hand and squeezed it reassuringly, "Yeah. We are. We really are kid…"

Rory smiled once more before pushing the plate towards her Mom again, "Eat. I'll help Luke with the dishes."

"I love you Rory." Lorelai whispered as she watched her stand up.

Rory smiled down at her, "I love you too Mom. We both do…"

She winked before walking to the kitchen to help Luke and Lorelai couldn't help but smile as she watched them work together. She loved the way Luke laughed when Rory spoke to him, joking still about how crazy they all were. She had missed this, missed being able to feel happy. And for the first time in months she was finally understanding that she did in fact deserve happiness…

And now she was finally getting it…

* * *

A few hours later, Emily Gilmore waltzed into Luke's apartment with Rory at her side. Luke tensed up as she moved about his tiny home but realized she wasn't at all concerned about his meager living habits. She crossed the room and sat down beside Lorelai on the couch and reached for her arm.

"Are you okay?" Emily asked desperately searching her daughters face. "Did he hit you again? Rory said he didn't but did he hit you?"

Lorelai shook her head, "No Mom. Not this time…we just argued. It's okay…I'm okay."

Emily sighed and put her purse down beside her, "I knew we never should have left last night. If we had been there it would have been okay."

Lorelai shook her head again, "It's no one's fault Mom."

"Well if it's anyone's fault its his parents…I never really liked them and clearly they didn't raise their son the right way. Stupid Straub…" Emily grunted.

Lorelai laughed softly, "Where's Dad?"

Emily sighed and then looked around the apartment, "Oh he had some business to take care of. He'll be here in a little while."

"Business?" Lorelai asked as she fidgeted in her seat. "What kind of business?"

Emily's eyes continued to roam the small apartment, "I think he was meeting with your lawyers to draw up Divorce papers and a restraining order."

Lorelai flinched, "Oh. Right…lawyers. The fun stuff…"

Emily shrugged, "Please your father loves drawing up papers." She paused, "Well probably not this kind but you know what I mean. He's tried to retire a thousand times but he thrives on business."

Lorelai smiled, "Sure. I know…"

Emily looked back at Luke, "So this is your apartment?"

Luke swallowed nervously and saw Lorelai and Rory glance at him slowly. "Yes…well it was my fathers office but-"

Emily smiled, "Relax Luke…I'm not going to insult you."

Luke shifted slightly, "What? No I didn't think-"

She laughed, "I just always wondered what your apartment would look like." She paused, "It's…quaint."

Lorelai groaned, "Mom…"

"What?" Emily asked incredulously, "I'm new at this okay?"

Rory laughed and walked to the kitchen, "Do you want some tea Grandma? Luke makes really great peppermint tea."

Emily's eyes traveled from her Granddaughter to Luke again, "I'd love some."

Luke smiled and walked over to where Rory was in the kitchen, "One peppermint tea coming right up…"

Emily smiled ad leaned back against the couch and smiled at her daughter, Lorelai just laughed and rolled her eyes. "What?" Emily asked.

Lorelai laughed some more. "Nothing Mom…" She smiled and reached a hand out to her which Emily gladly took.

* * *

Meanwhile, Richard Gilmore walked into the Woodbridge Police Station with a manila envelope in his hand. He walked up to the counter, gave his name and explained who he was there to see. After waiting a few moments, he was escorted into a small, dark room where Christopher sat waiting for him in his orange jump suit.

Richard glanced at the police officers standing guard as he sat down and looked directly at Christopher. "I can honestly say this is never a sight I thought I'd see." He paused, "Well no that's not true…I thought maybe you'd get arrested for something stupid as a kid like smoking pot or stealing something but never this. Not for hitting my daughter…"

"Richard…" Christopher chocked out softly.

"I didn't give you permission to talk." Richard said with a hard glare, "You will listen to me, and then maybe I'll let you speak. Understood?"

Christopher had known Richard Gilmore for most of his life. He had seen him deal with plenty of business deals over the years at the countless dinner parties he had attended as a child. He had even seen him take on his own father the night they told them that Lorelai was pregnant. He was used to the Richard Gilmore all business look, but this…this was very different.

He saw anger that burned deep and red and for the first time in his life he was actually afraid of Richard Gilmore…

Richard sighed, "I take your silence to mean we have an understanding here." He shifted in his seat and took out the envelope and placed it on the table. "I have hired the best possible lawyers for my Daughter to assure that you will never again lay your hands on her. I want to make this trial go as quickly as possible so that she and my Granddaughter can get on with their lives without you. The way it should be…the way it always was because you were to much of a coward to do what was right…"

Christopher shifted slightly and swallowed hard, the cool metal of the cuffs on his wrists made him shiver as he waited for Richard to continue.

"What I found interesting was that my lawyers saw that you and Lorelai aren't actually legally married because the ceremony took place in France." Richard said glancing at him over the rim of his glasses, "And you knew that…"

"Richard…" Christopher said with a pleading voice.

He put his hand up to silence him, "I didn't give you permission to talk yet." He opened the folder and took out the papers he needed, "You knew that you needed to have a legal ceremony here in the States to make it official but you knew that if you told Lorelai that…she would probably want to get out of it."

"Richard please…" Christopher said again as he shifted in his metal seat.

"You knew that she would come to her senses. You knew that in Paris she had just gotten caught up in the moment…you knew she wasn't in any frame of mind to marry you. You knew she didn't love you but she did it because she was scared and broken hearted." Richard said.

"She did love me…" Christopher tried to reason with him.

"Maybe once…but not now. She loves Luke and you know that. You knew that if you told her you weren't legally married then she would walk away and you couldn't handle that. So you lied…you kept this from her." Richard said smugly.

Christopher sighed, "I just thought that if she could get used to the idea of us being married…of us being a couple than it could work. And then once she was sure of us I was going to tell her…I was going to make it official."

"But you panicked when you saw that letter." Richard said leaning into the table more, "You knew that the longer you waited the more likely it was for her to figure it all out. She'd be filling out some type of legal papers, maybe for work or at the bank and when they were filed someone would inform her that she wasn't Mrs. Christopher Hayden…" He shrugged, "Then she would run for the hills because she would have found her out."

"Richard please…I'm so sorry for what I did. I'm so sorry for all of it. You have to believe me when I say I never meant to hurt Lorelai!" Christopher pleaded as he jumped slightly, the handcuffs slammed against the table. "I love her. I've always loved her!"

"A man never lies to the woman he loves about something like this. A man never hits the woman he loves, never says the things that you said to her." Richard said through gritted teeth. "You are a sorry excuse for a man and you knew that you didn't deserve her…and so you did everything in your power to try and keep her. But as usual your plans were anything but smart.

"Just…just let me talk to her and we'll figure it out." Christopher pleaded with him.

Richard shook his head, "At first I was angry when I realized you weren't married. And I guess I still am because I know that you played my daughter. You played upon her weakness and her heartbreak to get what you wanted even if it meant hurting her." He shrugged, "But now I'm happy…this saves her from having to deal with a divorce. Now we can get through this trial and she can move on with her life and finally put you behind her once and for all."

"Richard please…" Christopher said as tears brimmed in his eyes. "Please…"

Richard stood up and smiled down at the man he had once hoped would be his Son-In-Law. "You are a sorry excuse for a man Christopher Hayden…and my daughter deserves so much better. And she has better…"

"What the Diner guy?" Christopher spat out, "You think he can give her what she wants? He's a nobody!" He yelled, his once pleading voice turned angry at the mere thought of Luke Danes. "I'm twice the man he is!"

Richard shook his head, "That's where you are wrong. I too may have been blinded at one point by your name and who your family was but I know better now. I know that Luke Danes is a much better man than you or even I for that matter. He loves my daughter and my Granddaughter. He took care of them for years when you weren't around and he had no reason to do so…he did it because unlike you he wasn't a coward."

"Richard…" Christopher whispered, suddenly losing his nerve again.

"He may have made some mistakes but the more I think about it the more I realize it may have been partially my fault. Emily and I made him think he wasn't good enough when all along he was. He thought he had to give her more when all along all she wanted was him…" Richard said as he picked up the envelope again. "And from now on I will make sure my daughter has exactly what she wants. I can assure you that."

"So this is it then? You're just gonna lock me away for a stupid mistake? And she's gonna run off with the Burger Boy and live happily ever after refilling ketchup bottles and salt shakers?" He asked angrily, "The famous Richard Gilmore is going to let his daughter settle for that?"

Richard shook his head, "Finding someone who loves you unconditionally isn't settling Christopher. It's one of the greatest joys in life…a joy that most people never have the opportunity to have. But my daughter found that kind of love and I am going to make sure she doesn't lose it again."

Christopher sighed and leaned back in his chair, "She'll find a way to screw it up. You know she will. She always does."

Richard shook his head adamantly, "Not this time Christopher. Not this time. You screwed it up for her." Leaning down, he braced his fists on the cool metal table and glared down at Christopher. "My daughter is more amazing than I ever gave her credit for and I am sorry for that. But you will never, EVER lay another hand on her." He smiled, "And if by some strange chance you do…" He gritted his teeth, "I'll make sure you wished you were never born. I'll make sure the world knows just what kind of man you actually are. Understood?"

Christopher just stared up at him, unable to find any words to respond this time. He was tired and finally ready to give up the fight. He watched Richard smile in response as he stood up straight again and straightened out his suit.

"Well…now that that is settled." He cleared his throat and nodded at the guards, "I'll see you in court Christopher. In the mean time…" He sniffed at the air, "Enjoy your new home. I'd get used to it if I were you. I think you'll be here awhile."

Richard walked out of the room and didn't turn back. For the first time in a long time, he was going to do what was right for his daughter. He was going to make sure she had everything and anything she wanted no matter what it took. 

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it! Let me know and drop a review! Upnext-Richard talks to Lorelai about the fact that she wasn't ever legally married and what her options are now and much more! I'll try and update as soon as possible! **


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys! Once again thanks for all the great feedback :) I had a little time today so I worked on the next chapter so I could get it to you tonight! I hope you like it :) I'll try and update again within the next few days! **

* * *

That afternoon, Richard Gilmore walked into his daughters house and found Rory, Emily and Lorelai sitting together in the living room. Emily smiled and stood up, quickly walking over to her husband side.

"What took you so long?" Emily asked leaning up to kiss his cheek.

"I told you I had some business to take care of." He paused and looked at Lorelai, "How are you doing Lorelai?"

"I'm okay Dad…" She whispered softly trying to assure him she meant what she said.

Richard nodded once, "Good." He looked around the house, "Where's Luke?"

"He should be here in a little while. He was just meeting with Caesar and Lane about stuff at the Diner. He wanted to make sure they were all set for the next few days so he didn't have to keep checking in." Rory answered.

Richard nodded and held the manila envelope closer to his side, "Good. Good." He cleared his throat, "Rory, Emily…do you think you could go make me some coffee? I'm very tired. And I need to talk to Lorelai for a moment."

Emily tensed up, "Is everything alright Richard?"

He smiled slowly at her, "Everything is fine darling. I would just like to talk to Lorelai about a few things before everyone else weighs in."

Emily looked between her husband and daughter and then nodded, "Oh. Alright." She looked at Rory and cocked her head towards the kitchen, "Come on Rory."

Rory stood up slowly and looked over at her Mother, offering a supportive smile before she followed Emily to the kitchen. Lorelai fidgeted nervously on her spot on the couch before her Father sat down beside her. She waited and watched as he opened the folder and shuffled through the papers for a few moments before turning back to her.

Lorelai swallowed hard, "What is it? Can I not press charges or something? Did I do something wrong?"

Richard shook his head, "No. No. That's not it. I just had my lawyers look into your options and what a divorce would mean for you."

Lorelai sighed, "What, am I going to lose everything? Do I have to sell the house? We didn't sign any prenuptial agreements or anything…"

He shook his head again, "No. The thing is you can't get a divorce Lorelia-"

She grimaced at his words and practically levitated off the couch at his words, "What do you mean? I have to stay married to him forever? But why? How is that even possible."

He put a hand up to silence her, "You didn't let me finish. What I was saying is you can't get a divorce because you were never actually legally married."

Lorelai stopped her frantic movements and let his words sink in, "Not legally married? How? Why?"

Richard took a few forms out of the folder and handed it to her, "If you get married outside of the United States and you are a U.S. citizen, you need to have another ceremony here to make it legal. Even if it just means going down to the Court House. But you two never did that…"

Lorelai looked down at the papers her father had handed her. "No. We didn't…I didn't realize that we would have too…"

Richard nodded, "Christopher found out that it wasn't legal. He knew you weren't actually married here."

She lifted her face and stared at him in shock, "He knew? If he knew then why didn't he say anything? Why wouldn't he have told me?"

Richard smiled, "Because he knew that if you weren't legally married he had no way of keeping you."

"Keeping me? I don't…" She whispered shaking her head in confusion.

He reached a hand out to his daughter, "Lorelai I know you didn't really love him. I know that in that moment in Paris you just wanted to feel loved and you agreed to marry him. But can you honestly tell me if he had told you that you weren't legally married that you would have done it all over again?"

Lorelai sighed and looked down at the papers again, "No. I wouldn't have…"

Richard reached out a gentle hand to her, he stroked her arm reassuringly. "He knew you loved Luke. He knew that marrying him wasn't what you wanted and he knew that he was preying on you in a moment of weakness. Both with marrying you in Paris and hitting you…"

Lorelai sniffled slightly and looked back up at him, "I tried really hard to love him. Once I realized what I had done in Paris…I told myself I had to make it work because I had screwed up enough already. I couldn't handle another failure." She laughed sadly, "Got to say this failure is worse than any I could have imagined…I became that girl…"

"I already told you that you are not a failure." Richard said shaking his head, "Christopher knew what he was doing Lorelai…you know he did. He made his own choices."

She nodded slowly, "So if we aren't legally married then we don't have to do the whole divorce thing…then we just have to focus on the trial. And then once that's over…" She took a deep breath, "I can just…move on?"

Richard smiled, "Yes."

Lorelai smiled weakly back, "If only it were that easy…"

He sighed and reached for her hand again, "Lorelai, you aren't going through this alone. Your Mother and I will be here every step of the way and Rory is here too." He shrugged, "And I have a feeling Luke may never let you out of his sight for more than a few minutes at a time from now on."

Lorelai laughed, "You may just be right about that…"

Richard smile, "He loves you."

She nodded slowly, "It seems that he does. I just haven't figured out why yet."

He squeezed her hand, "You are an amazing woman Lorelai. And you deserve the best and I believe that Luke will give you the best. You'll make it work this time."

Lorelai smiled weakly, "I hope so…"

He shrugged again, "Besides…this way Luke could be your first husband. Not your second." He said with a smile.

Lorelai's heart fluttered in her chest, "Don't get ahead of yourself Dad…"

"It will happen…you'll see." He said with a reassuring smile.

Lorelai smiled back just as the front door opened again and Luke walked in. Luke smiled at them as he walked in with bags of food from the Diner.

"Hey…thought you guys might be hungry." He said looking down at the bags, "I whipped up some stuff before I came over."

Richard smiled and patted Lorelai's hand again before he stood up to face Luke, "That sounds wonderful Luke. I am quite hungry now that I think about it." He turned back to Lorelai, "We will finish talking about this later okay? You probably want to talk to Luke about a few things anyway…"

Lorelai smiled nervously up at him and tried to ignore the way she could feel Luke's eyes boring into the side of her head. "Sure. Thanks Dad."

Richard smiled again and then walked over to Luke, he took the bags from him and then walked back to the kitchen. Luke watched him go before he walked all the way into the living room and sat down beside her.

"Everything okay?" Luke asked looking down at the folder in Lorelai's hands, "Did your Dad suddenly come to his senses and realize I am no where near good enough for you?"

Lorelai smirked and shook her head, "Would you stop that. They like you Luke. Trust me…they really do."

Luke nodded slowly, "Okay. So what's going on? Is it the case? Is Christopher trying to fight it somehow?"

She shook her head, "No. I mean yes it is about the case but he isn't trying to fight me for anything. The only option he has at this point is plead guilty to the charges and deal with the consequences."

"But what about the divorce?" Luke asked curiously.

She opened the folder again and handed him the papers her Father had given her, "Turns out getting married in Paris isn't legal here in the States…"

Luke's wrinkled his brow and then looked down at the papers, "What do you mean? You aren't actually married?"

Lorelai shook her head, "Nope. Still never been a bride…"

Luke let her words sink in for a moment before looking up at her, "You're not married…"

She licked her lips nervously and shook her head, "Nope."

He cleared his throat and looked back down at the papers in front of him, "You didn't marry him." He paused, "Not legally…"

Shaking her head again she continued on, "No. I didn't realize that you would have to have another ceremony here in the States to make it official. But it turns out Christopher did."

His head snapped up and he frowned at her, "He knew it wasn't legal?" She nodded in response, "Well then why didn't he tell you?"

"Because he knew that I didn't really want to be married to him I suppose." She shrugged, "We were in Paris and I got so swept up in the idea because for once I wasn't thinking about you. But once we were here I realized that I had made a mistake and he knew that…so if he had told me I would have just walked away."

Luke huffed softly, "He knew this was his only way of keeping you with him."

Lorelai nodded, "I guess so."

He nodded slowly and then closed the folder before throwing it on the coffee table in front of them. "He really is a coward."

She smirked; "Yeah…"

Luke looked back at her and tried to read her expression, "So…how do you feel about this?"

Lorelai sighed, "I mean…it's kind of confusing. I guess I understand why he did it but it still makes me mad that he lied about it. I feel a little guilty though for leading him on in the first place…"

"Lorelai…" Luke whispered to her.

"I should have known better than to say yes when we were in Paris. But I didn't…I just needed to feel something." She whispered.

He nodded, "I know…"

"I'm not saying all the things he did were right but…" She shrugged, "I guess I'm not all that innocent in all this…"

Luke watched her for a moment before answering, "But how exactly do you feel about never actually being married to him?"

She licked her lips and smiled nervously, "Relieved…"

He couldn't help but smile a little, "Really?"

She smiled back, "Really…"

"How come?" Luke asked leaning closer to her.

"Because…" She whispered looking down as her cheeks flushed, "I only want to be married once. To the right guy…"

"To the right guy…" Luke whispered slowly letting her words sink in.

She smiled nervously, "You were the only guy I could ever actually picture myself being married to Luke. Even with Max…I tried to picture it but I couldn't see it. But with you…" She reached out for her hand and smiled, "With you I saw it all…"

He nodded slowly, "I know what you mean. When I realized I had married Nicole…"

Lorelai cringed and stuck her tongue out in disgust, "Ugh…Nicole…"

Luke laughed and continued, "I wanted to die. And then I realized when I said those words to her on that boat…I was pretending…wishing it was you."

She pouted softly, "I really wanted to marry you Luke…"

He nodded back, "I really wanted to marry you too Lorelai…I'm sorry I made you doubt that."

She opened her mouth to say that she couldn't wait for them to have that but she stopped. She didn't want to push him any further than this. They had talked about a lot in the last few days but she also knew that inside Luke still could only handle so much.

She fidgeted in her seat again and cleared her throat, "My Dad said that all we have to worry about now is the trial but there is enough evidence to convict. Once that's over and he gets his sentence it will be over…" Lorelai whispered, "I mean I'll have a lot to work through I suppose but having to deal with him will be over."

Luke nodded in understanding, "That must make you feel better. It won't be as dragged out now…"

She smiled, "Yup."

Luke looked back at the folder on the table and let out a small laugh, "I'm sorry…I just I can't help but feel really happy right now."

"Luke…" She whispered softly as she moved closer to him.

He turned back to her, a smile growing on his face. "I know how fucked up this all is and I hate that he did this all to you Lorelai. God you know I do…I could kill him myself if I had the chance."

"But you won't because of April…" Lorelai said with a warning tone.

Luke nodded, "Right. But I'm just really happy that you weren't really married to him." He paused and watched her smile slightly, "Does that make me selfish?"

She felt the smile grow on her lips and she shook her head, "No. Not at all."

He smiled and then rubbed his thighs slowly, "Okay. We should go in the kitchen…"

She watched him stand up quickly, "Are you okay?" She asked nervously.

Luke laughed and looked back at her, "Lorelai its taking all of my strength not to kiss you right now so I just think it would be best if we go in the kitchen…I may feel less prone to kiss you if other people are around. Especially your parents."

Lorelai blushed and smirked, "You want to kiss me?"

Luke rolled his eyes, "Lorelai I always want to kiss you. I've wanted to kiss you since the day I met you and everyday since then. These past months have been torture…"

She licked her lips and then stood up on wobbly legs, "I know what you mean…"

He nodded and took a step back, "And even though you aren't legally married…I just think that we should wait for that. You know until things settle down…I don't want it to be a rushed thing. I want it to be right…"

Lorelai smiled up at him and whispered, "Every kiss with you is right Luke…"

He felt the usual ache in his chest that she caused, "Right. Well…I just really think we should wait."

Lorelai studied his face, she could see the inner battle he was fighting and it both killed her and warmed her heart at the same time. She hated to see him in pain, in any kind of pain. But she also liked knowing he still wanted her as much as she wanted him, even after everything they had been through.

"Okay…we can wait." She said smiling at him, "I understand."

He put his nervous hands in his pockets and smiled slightly, "Okay. Thanks…"

She smiled and reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. "I'm the one who should be thanking you Luke. You're always looking out for me…"

He smiled and lifted the hand she wasn't holding, brushing a stray curl out of her face he spoke sincerely. "And I always will…"

She smiled as he let his hand drop from her face but squeeze her hand in his. He let go just to step back and let her walk towards the kitchen so he could follow her. Just like he always did…

In the kitchen, Rory was sitting at the table with her Grandparents discussing what would happen to her little sister GiGi.

"So you had someone contact Sherry?" Rory asked her Grandfather curiously.

Lorelai and Luke walked in at that exact moment and Lorelai gasped, "Oh God…I forgot all about Gigi. I know she was with Sherry that night thank God…She was visiting but I totally forgot to call her."

Richard shook his head, "It's all been taken care of. Sherry knows what happened and she's taking full custody of Gigi again."

"But will she leave her again?" Rory asked nervously, "Gigi is going to need someone to be looking out for her…someone she can count on."

Richard nodded, "I spoke to Sherry myself and she understands she can't run off again. I told her that we would help her anyway we could if need be, but I know that Christophers Mother will also be assisting her."

"So Francine knows what happened?" Lorelai asked pulling her sweater around her more tightly suddenly feeling cold, she could feel Luke beside her which helped her relax but only slightly. "What did she say?"

"I talked to her this morning and explained the situation. She was shocked…and we argued a bit but she knows that her son has to pay the price for what he did." Richard said looking directly at his daughter. "She won't be a problem. I promise."

Lorelai sighed and leaned against the cool counter, "Okay…"

"Grandpa told us that you and Dad weren't actually married…" Rory whispered looking from Luke to her Mother.

Lorelai nodded slowly, "Looks that way."

Rory glanced at Luke who couldn't seem to take his eye off of Lorelai, "It will speed up this process…so that's good."

Lorelai smiled and glanced at Luke out of the corner of her eye, "Yeah. It's good."

Rory smiled and stood up from her spot at the table, "Well I don't know about anyone else but I'm starving!" She turned to Luke, "Want to help me Luke?"

He smiled at Rory and walked up beside her and began emptying the bags of food with her. Richard and Emily grabbed plates and Lorelai went to feed Paul Anka. When she was finished she looked around her small kitchen, the exact place where one of the worst moments of her life had happened. But as she stood there and stared at the people that were surrounding her she knew she was pretty damn lucky.

* * *

Later that night, Richard and Emily once again said their goodbyes and went back to their house. Richard said they would be back in the morning with Lorelai's lawyers to discuss the case and what she would need to do. Rory had gone to take Paul Anka for another walk as Luke and Lorelai sat together in the living room talking.

"Rory said Logan wants to come out here soon." Luke said softly, "How are they doing? Do you like him now?"

Lorelai shrugged, "He's growing on me…"

Luke smirked, "I still don't like him."

She laughed, "Of course you don't. But Rory is a grown woman and if he is the man she decides she loves we need to respect that."

He sighed, "I guess…"

Lorelai laughed again and shook her head, "I just wish she would go back to school soon. Its not that I don't love having her here but I don't want her missing too much school. She already has enough catching up to do and I don't want her to fall any further behind…"

He nodded in understanding, "I know. But you know she is just worried about you…"

Lorelai smiled, "I know…but we both need to get on with our lives if we have any chance of living normal lives again."

He nodded, "You will. Both of you…in time."

"Time…" Lorelai said with a raised eyebrow, "I've never been fond of time…I'm not good at waiting."

Luke chuckled, "You don't have to tell me that…"

She smirked and was about to respond when she heard a knock on the front door. Lorelai frowned and looked at the clock before she stood up from the couch.

"Who could that be?" Lorelai asked, "If it's Sookie with more food I'm sending her away. I am going to gain a thousand pounds between the two of you and your delicious food…"

He smirked and watched her walk towards the door, "If you haven't gained weight over the years with all the crap you eat I think you'll be safe…"

Lorelai just rolled her eyes and walked to the door to answer it, when she opened it her heart jumped in her chest. "April…"

The young girl stood on the porch and looked up at Lorelai nervously, "H-hi Lorelai. I'm sorry to just show up like this…"

Luke who had heard Lorelai speak his daughters name rushed to the door. "April?" He asked looking over at her, "What are you doing here? How did you get here?"

Lorelai felt the old fears and insecurities creep in at the sight of Luke's long lost daughter. She couldn't help but worry that he would leave her once again. And this time she wasn't sure she could survive if he did…

April seemed transfixed by the bruises on Lorelai's face. "Uh…I talked to Mom and told her I wanted to come see you because of everything that happened. Aunt Liz met me at the Diner and told me you were here…she dropped me off. She wanted to come in but she didn't want to crowd Lorelai…"

Lorelai felt nervous under the girl's intense stare, Luke shifted slightly. "April I told you I would take care of everything…"

April sighed and looked at her Dad and then back at Lorelai, "I'm really sorry Lorelai."

Lorelai smiled nervously and leaned against the doorframe, "April it's okay-"

April shook her head, "If I had never done that stupid project Dad wouldn't know about me. And then you guys would have gotten married and everything would have been okay. None of this would have happened…"

Lorelai shook her head, "God. No…no April none of this is your fault." She looked at Luke who looked at a loss for words, "Come in here…"

Stepping aside, April walked into the house and over to the living room. Luke and Lorelai shared a nervous glance, he reached for her before she could step into the living room.

"Lorelai…" He whispered softly, "I didn't expect her to show up like this…"

Lorelai smiled weakly up at him, "Luke…it's okay. Just…can we…will we be okay? Can you deal with-"

He shook his head, "I'm not leaving you again if that's what you're worried about."

She smiled slowly and then turned, pulling him with her towards the living room where April was waiting. Lorelai and Luke sat down on the couch while April sat nervously in the corner chair, staring down at her hands.

"April…" Lorelai whispered tentatively, the young girl lifted her head slowly to reveal tears in her eyes. "None of this is your fault. You have to know that."

"But you hate me. You have to hate me. I'm the reason Dad pushed you away." April said as her lip trembled.

Luke grimaced and Lorelai shook her head adamantly before lifting herself up and kneeling down in front of her, "Oh sweetie no that's not true. I don't hate you at all! Not even a little bit!"

"But…" April hiccupped nervously, "If I hadn't of shown up you and Dad would have gotten married like you planned too. I'm really sorry…"

Lorelai shook her head again and Luke sat transfixed from his seat on the couch, unable to think of anything to say. "April…I am so glad that you came into your Dads life. I know how much he loves you and how much he has loved getting to know you this past year. I wish he could have known about you from the beginning but I'm just glad he has you now. Don't you ever apologize for finding him."

"So you really don't hate me?" April questioned, looking at her over the rims of her glasses.

Lorelai smiled and reached for her hand, "No. Not at all. Any problems that your father and I had are between him and I. We both made mistakes that had nothing to do with you. We made our own choices. You have to understand that I don't blame you for any of this…and neither does your father."

April looked back at her Dad who sat motionless on the couch, "He hasn't been very happy since you guys broke up…"

Lorelai smiled sadly and glanced back at Luke slowly, "Well I haven't been very happy myself…"

April took a deep breath and continued to look at her Father, "I really wish that you would let me get to know Lorelai more."

Luke hesitated for a moment as he rubbed the tops of his thighs, his hands were sweating from his nerves. "I never should have tried to keep you from her. For that I'm sorry. I just…I was so surprised to see you kid…to find out that you had been out there all this time and I didn't know about you. I guess I just wanted to keep you to myself for awhile but I know that was wrong."

April nodded slowly, "I know Mom didn't want me to get to know her either…"

Luke nodded once, "No. She didn't…and I guess I was just nervous that she would take you away from me again so I just did whatever she wanted me to do. And in the process I hurt myself and Lorelai."

April nodded and turned back to Lorelai, "She thinks I'll love you more than her."

Lorelai smiled sadly, "April I would love to be a part of your life in anyway that you want me to be. But I can never take the place of your Mom. I would never want that. I know how important it is to have a relationship with your own Mom, I didn't have a great one with my Mom growing up."

"But you have a great relationship with Rory." April said softly, "Dad talks about you two like you're the dynamic duo of Mothers and Daughters."

Lorelai smiled and looked back at Luke, "We do have a pretty special bond her and I…"

"Well I told Mom that you would never replace her. But I also told her that I wanted to be a part of Dads life and that meant that I would be a part of your life too. She kept me away from him for too long and I don't want to lose him again." April said with a nervous whisper.

Lorelai shook her head and squeezed the young girls hand, "You won't."

"But we're moving to New Mexico…" April said swallowing hard, "Thousands of miles away from here…"

Lorelai looked back at Luke who once again had a sad expression on his face, "I'm going to fight for custody of you April. We won't be able to see each other everyday but we will see each other. And we can talk on the phone everyday if you want too. I won't let your Mom take you away from me again."

April reached a hand up to wipe another tear away, "You promise?"

He smiled and looked at her and then at Lorelai, "I've realized in this past year I need to start fighting harder for the things I love. I'm not going to give up so easily…"

Lorelai couldn't help but smile at his words and she felt April pull on her hands, she looked back at her. "I'm really glad you're okay…" April whispered softly. "When Dad told me what happened I was really scared…"

Lorelai let out a shaky breath, "Well I've had pretty amazing people looking out for me. And it helps a lot to have you here right now…"

April's smile grew, "Really? So it's okay that I'm here?"

Lorelai smiled and reached forward to hug her, "It is more than okay April. You are welcome here anytime."

April smiled and finally relaxed as she felt Lorelai wrap her arms around her. She hugged her back tightly and looked at her Father over Lorelai's shoulder and noticed the small smile on his own lips. She could see his eyes were sparkling with unshed tears and she let out a sigh of relief because for the first time in a long time she was starting to think everything was going to be okay again.

The front door opened, breaking the spell that had been cast as Paul Anka came trotting in with Rory beside him. "You could have warned me that he's now afraid of street lamps…" She said walking into the living room, she stopped in her tracks when she saw April sitting with her Mom. "April. Hey. I didn't know you were going to be here…"

Lorelai took a deep breath and stood up, wiping her own tears away she smiled at her Daughter and put a hand on April's back. "She came to surprise us. Isn't that nice of her?"

Rory glanced up at her Mom and noticed for the first time in a long time she had a genuine smile on her face. "Yeah. It is." She paused and looked at Luke who seemed lost in thought and she smiled and turned back to April. "Hey my Mom told me you are really into books. Want to take a look at some of the stuff I have in my room? I had so many I couldn't fit them all in my new apartment. I'd be happy to lend you some if you want."

April's face lit up, "Really?"

Rory smiled and leaned down to take off Paul Anka's leash, "Sure. I love talking books with people. It's one of my favorite past times."

April looked at Luke slowly, "Can I?"

He smiled at his daughter and then glanced at Rory with an appreciative stare, "Of course. Go ahead."

The young girl stood up quickly and followed Rory towards her room down the hall. Paul Anka quickly followed them, anxious to see what was going on. Lorelai smiled when she heard the sound of laughter coming from the room, glad that there was something other than the sound of tears in the house once again.

She pulled at her sweater nervously and then looked back at Luke who was staring at her so intensely her cheeks began to burn. "Luke…?" She questioned nervously.

He smiled and stood up, walking closer to her he saw the anxious expression on her face. Without saying a word he pulled her closer to him and slowly leaned his head down and captured her lips in a tender kiss. When he pulled away, he couldn't help but laugh at the stunned expression on Lorelai's face despite the fact that she was clinging to his strong arms desperately.

"Luke?" She asked again softly, unsure what that kiss had meant.

"I love you so much Lorelai." He whispered to her, his face only inches from her. "You are amazing."

She swallowed hard and felt herself relax in his embrace, "I thought you wanted to wait to do that…"

He sighed and reached one of his hands to cup her unbruised cheek with, "I did. And I should have." He shrugged. "But I couldn't help myself…seeing you with April like that despite everything you have been going through and everything that I put you through with April…" He paused and looked deep into her eyes, "It made me fall in love with you all over again…"

Her left hand rubbed against the soft flannel on his arm and she blinked a few times, "If we are going to make this work Luke I need to be a part of her life. A part of your life with her…"

He nodded slowly, "I know. I also know that if I have any chance of getting this whole parenting thing right I'm going to need your help."

She laughed slightly, "Well I'd love to help you. But it seems you are doing an amazing job without me Luke. That girl adores you."

He nodded nervously and looked down the hall, "I just don't want to disappoint her. I've already missed all this time with her and I can't stand the thought that she's going to go away again…"

She rubbed his arms soothingly, "I know. But you're going to fight for her. I know you will. And I'll be there right beside you the whole time. Just like you're here with me now…"

He stared deep into her eyes and took a deep breath, "I have missed you so much."

She felt the tears burning her eyes again and she nodded before answering in a chocked voice, "I missed you too Luke. So much…more than you could ever know." She watched him close his eyes and breath her in, gently moving side to side with her in his arms and she smiled, "For the record Luke…I never would have been able to survive on my own all those years with Rory if it weren't for you."

His eyes fluttered open and he cocked his head to the side, "What?"

She smiled and leaned forward to brush her lips against his softly, "All those years you helped me with Rory…I needed you then Luke and I need you now. All those times you brought us food even when you knew I couldn't pay. All those times you let Rory do her homework at the Diner afterhours because I had to work late…all those times you helped me take care of her when she was sick." She shrugged and smiled up at him as he beamed at her, "You've always been a natural at the parenting thing Luke…whether you realized it or not."

He cleared his throat, suddenly feeling very emotional. "Uh…well thank you Lorelai." He paused and smiled at her, "I would do it all again you know…even if you and I never got together I'd do it all again. I'd be there to help you in anyway I could…"

She smiled and kissed him again, "I know. And that makes me love you even more."

He smiled again and then reluctantly pulled away, "As much as I love this…" He said motioning between them, "We should probably-"

She nodded slowly and smiled, "I know."

He sighed and put a hand on his hip, chuckling to himself. "Damn you for being so irresistible Gilmore."

She laughed and flipped her hair, "I don't know what you are talking about Danes…"

He groaned, "And there you go with the hair flip." He shook his head and looked towards Rory's room. "Geez…you really are trying to kill me."

She giggled again and walked up behind him, grasping his hand in hers as they walked down the hall. "No. I'm not trying to kill you Luke. Now that I have you right where I want you…" She nuzzled his ear, "I'm never letting you go again!"

He smiled and leaned down to kiss the top of her head before they entered Rory's room. "Right back at ya…"

Lorelai couldn't help but smile even when she felt his hand slip from hers. She understood why it was important that they wait, why it was important that they take it slow but it didn't make it any easier. She had missed this man more than she thought it was possible to miss anyone.

She wanted their middle…and now that it was within reach she wanted to hold onto it as tightly as she could. Despite all the terrible things that were still going on for her…she knew that this was exactly where they were all supposed to be. And she couldn't have been happier about it… 

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it! Let me know by dropping a review! I should have time to write either tomorrow or Wednesday so keep an eye out for an update. The more reviews I get seems to give me more motivation ;) So if you want an update faster you know what to do! THANKS! Hope you all had a good Monday! **


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey guys, I'm so sorry it has taken me so long to update this! I had some unexpected issues going on in my personal life and haven't had time to write more chapters. But I did not forget about you all! At last here is the next chapter :) I hope you like it.**

**By the way, I can't remember exactly when it was that Christopher found the letter during the show. But for the sake of this story it's around the beginning of summer. Okay anyway, read and enjoy and I will try and update soon! **

* * *

The following Friday night, Lorelai was curled up on the couch flipping through the channels on the TV. She hadn't left the house much in the past few days, she didn't feel like seeing anyone with the bruises on her face. She knew in this town it was inevitable that everyone knew what had happened, she also knew they meant well. But she just couldn't handle their pity at the moment, she needed to find a way to really start to move on with her life.

Rory had gone back to school and attended classes and finished up assignments she needed to do. She had promised Lorelai she would be back for the weekend even though Lorelai tried to protest and make her stay at school. April was still staying with them, and slept in Rory's room on an air mattress. Lorelai had assumed that Luke would go back to his apartment with her when she showed up but he had also refused to leave her side.

As much as she loved their support she was hoping to get back to normal soon, she hated everyone following her every move. She had at least been able to shake her parents for a few days, they were busy dealing with legal matters for the upcoming case against Christopher. She was pretty sure if her Mother had insisted on staying at the house too she would have lost it.

Despite all the company, she couldn't pretend that she wasn't becoming restless and depressed. She knew she needed to get out, but she couldn't seem to step out the front door which was strange because the attack had happened here. She had felt that staying in the house would be to hard but instead the idea of leaving made it feel even more real to her.

Sighing, she turned the TV off and laid her head back on the couch and closed her eyes. Luke was in the kitchen washing dishes and April had run to the store to pick up a few things for a project she had for school. When she heard the front door open, she was confused when she heard a number of different voices echoing through the hallway.

Sitting up, she watched as Rory, April, Lane and Sookie walked through the foyer and into the living room. "What's going on?" Lorelai asked nervously, "Rory I didn't think you would be back until much later…"

"Well I'm a good liar Mom." Rory said smiling as she placed a bag down on the coffee table and sat down beside her, "I got back a few hours ago but I had some calls to make and errands to run."

"I don't understand…" Lorelai said looking up at the rest of the girls just as Luke walked into the living room with a smile on his face.

"Lorelai sweetie," Sookie started, "I know how difficult this is but you really need to get out of the house. Staying locked away in here isn't going to make you feel any better and its only going to make you more depressed."

"Sookie…" Lorelai said shaking her head as she pulled at the sleeves of her long sleeve shirt, "I really don't want to go anywhere looking like this…I don't want anyone to see me."

"I happen to think you look beautiful." Luke said walking up behind the couch and placing a hand on her shoulder, "And Sookie's right, you need to get out of the house."

Lorelai cringed, "But I can't face anyone right now…you know I love this town but I can't imagine the questions they are going to have and I just-"

"This town does like its gossip but when it comes to serious matters they know where the line is." Lane said cutting Lorelai off, "And if for some reason they don't, they will have to face us."

Lorelai sighed, "Well where exactly would I be going?"

"To a party in the square." April said excitedly, "Ceaser and Dad have all your favorite foods cooking there as we speak and Westons has a great set up of deserts."

Lorelai looked over at Luke and raised an eyebrow, "When exactly did you have time to cook today? You were with me most of the day…"

"Well you did take a three hour nap and almost an hour long shower." He said with a smirk, "Babette came over while you were sleeping and stayed until I got back."

Lorelai sighed and looked back down at her hands, "Guys I don't know about this…"

Rory reached for her Mom's hands and squeezed them tightly, "Mom…I know how scared you are. I know how difficult this is for you to deal with but you aren't the type of woman who sits and home and cries…you're a woman of action."

Lorelai cringed and looked up at her daughter, "This is different Rory…"

Rory shook her head, "It's only different if you make it different Mom. If you stay locked up in here you let Dad win…"

Her daughter's words rang clear in her mind and she realized she was right, "I don't want that…I just…I'm so ashamed." She whispered as the tears threatened to spill over.

Rory shook her head and scooted closer to her, "You have NOTHING to be ashamed of Mom. Dad did this…not you."

"But they all know why he did it…they all know what I did to Luke…" She said glancing nervously over at him as he rounded the couch.

"Oh Mom…" Rory whispered softly, "Mom no one is mad at you or blames you for anything."

Luke sat on the coffee table and leaned closer to her, "Lorelai everyone in this town loves you. You know that...they just want to help you. We all do. And I think getting out and having a little fun will do you a lot of good. Screw Christopher, you can't be ashamed because he is a freaking coward."

"But Luke-" She tried to protest.

He shook his head, "No. No buts. If you tell me you don't want to go because you just don't want to have fun then I won't make you go. But if you try and tell me you don't want to go because you feel ashamed or embarrassed then I'm dragging you down there like you've dragged me to a million of those other festivals."

"Luke…" She chocked out trying not to laugh as she wiped at her tears.

He smiled at her, "Come on…I'll even dance with you."

"Slow songs and fast songs?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He smirked at her, "Whatever you want."

"I'm going to hold you to that mister." She said with a small nervous smile.

He smiled back, "So does that mean you'll go?"

She took a deep breath and nodded slowly, "Yes…I'll go."

He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her forehead gently before he stood up and walked towards the door, "Okay. Then I'll get out of the way. I'll see you there okay?"

"Wait…you're leaving?" Lorelai asked nervously.

Luke smiled and looked towards the girls smiling, "I think they can take it from here."

"But where will you be?" She asked as she leaned against the back of the couch suddenly feeling afraid again.

He smiled softly at her and walked back over to her, kneeling behind the couch he looked her in the eye. "I'll meet you at the Diner when you're ready okay? Just call me. I'll be with you the whole time."

"Promise?" She asked in a shaky voice.

"I promise." He leaned forward and this time placed a kiss on her lips. "I'll see you in a little bit okay? I need to help Ceaser finish cooking."

She nodded slowly, "Okay…"

He winked encouragingly at her and then waved at the girls before walking out of the house. Slowly, Lorelai turned back to the four girls staring at her by the couch and took a nervous breath.

"So…what now?" Lorelai asked skeptically.

Rory reached for the bag, "Now the real fun begins!"

"First things first, lets go pick out an outfit!" Sookie said reaching for her best friend and pulling her up off the couch.

"Why do I have a feeling I'm going to regret this?" She groaned as the girls pulled her upstairs towards her bedroom.

* * *

An hour later, Lorelai was standing in front of the mirror in her bedroom admiring her friends and daughters work. They had made sure her curls were perfect and picked out a beautiful red dress she had protested against at first. But Sookie insisted on the dress reminding Lorelai of the dress she had worn at Rory's graduation years before. Sookie said that Luke had been unable to keep his eyes off of her that day which had made Lorelai turn the color of the actual dress.

Lane had carefully applied just the right amount of make up to Lorelai's face that hid the still present bruise on her face. It wasn't as dark as it had been but it was still very visible until Lane had worked her magic. She still felt uncomfortable in her own skin, something that she had never really experienced. She had always been aware of her flaws like any other girl but she had felt confident enough in her appearance to look past them.

But now, after everything that had happened in the last few months she didn't recognize herself anymore when she looked in the mirror. Since the attack, she had made sure to avoid mirrors at all cost and even now when she was all dolled up she still didn't feel like herself.

A small knock on the door pulled her out of her thoughts, and she smiled when she saw April poke her head in. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Lorelai smiled and motioned for her to come in, "Of course."

April smiled back and walked over to her with a small bag in her hands, "My Dad wanted me to give to this to you before we left."

Lorelai stared at her questioningly, "What is it?"

April lifted her hands and passed her the gift, "Open it and find out."

Her eyes flickered from April to the bag and then took it slowly, she pulled the card out first and opened it and began to read her eyes welling up with tears before she even finished the first word.  
_  
Lorelai,  
The last few months away from you have been the hardest months of my life. We may never be able to erase the hurt we both caused but I think we can learn from it. From now on I promise you that I will be open with you about everything. When I say no more secrets I mean no more secrets. You're stuck with me Lorelai. I'm never, ever letting you go again.  
I know lately you haven't felt very comfortable or confident with yourself. One of the things I have always loved about you is the way you carry yourself and are always so strong. I miss that Lorelai and I know she's still in there somewhere. I want you to wear this necklace to remember exactly who you are. I was never more proud of you then that night at the Dragonfly opening because you had made all of your dreams come true. Remember that woman Lorelai and show Christopher and everyone else that nothing can bring you down.  
I love you Lorelai Gilmore.  
And on the days when you don't feel your best, I'll be right by your side.  
_

_ Love,  
Luke_

The tears were flowing freely by the time she finished the letter and opened the bag to reveal a beautiful silver dragonfly necklace.

"Oh Luke…" She whispered softly.

April smiled at her, "Do the tears mean you like it?"

Lorelai smiled and looked up at the young girl, "I love it."

"Good." April said smiling, "Dad was really nervous when he gave it to me. He wants you to be happy Lorelai. I may not have known him for very long but I can tell that he really loves you…he's been so sad while you guys were apart."

Lorelai swallowed nervously and stared at the young girl, "Your Dad is an amazing man April. I've tried to live without him but I know now that I can't…"

"Well good. Because you two clearly belong together." April said with a smile.

"Clearly." Lorelai said with a smile as she wiped a few stray tears away. "Can you help me with this?"

April smiled and took the necklace from her, "Sure."

Turning around, Lorelai looked in the mirror and held her hair back as April clasped the necklace around her neck. Her hands instinctively reached up to the silver dragonfly and rubbed the cool metal gently and felt her heart skip a beat. For the first time in a long time, she was starting to feel like the old Lorelai again.

"You look really pretty." April whispered, "Dad's gonna die when he sees you."

Lorelai smiled at her through the mirror, "Well I certainly hope not." She teased.

April smiled, "You ready?"

Lorelai smiled, "As ready as I'll ever be…"

April stepped aside and watched Lorelai reach for her sweater before they walked out of her bedroom. She met the rest of the girls downstairs and met their approving smiles before she called Luke and they walked out the front door towards the town square.

Lorelai looked around nervously at all the people already at the party. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was faintly aware of her the girls talking around her. She was suddenly beginning to feel unsure again and she wanted to turn and run as fast as she could back to her house. But when her eyes fell on Luke walked from the gazebo towards her she reached for the necklace and reminded herself to keep breathing.

"You look beautiful…" He whispered to her as he stepped all the way up in front of her.

"Thank you." Her eyes lingered over his jeans and buttoned up white shirt, "You look very handsome."

He shrugged and pulled at his collar, "Patty said I had to leave the plaid and hat at home tonight."

Lorelai smiled, "I wouldn't have minded if you had stuck with the old uniform. I'm pretty fond of it." She said as she pulled his hands away from his collar, "But you do look pretty amazing tonight, all dressed up."

"Only for you." He said with a smirk.

"I'm going to go check on the boys and Zach. You better save a dance for me later Lorelai I've picked out some good tracks for us." Lane said as she walked away.

Sookie looked past Lorelai, "Oh no…Davey is in a stage three meltdown. Jackson can never handle stage three…" She started to walk away, "Meet you later at the cake station?" Sookie said with a smile.

"You got it." Lorelai said with a smile.

Rory smiled and put an arm around April, "I think April and I will start at the onion ring station and work our way towards the build your own burger table. See you guys later?" She said with a knowing smile at her Mom.

Lorelai nodded, "Pace yourself."

Rory smiled and leaned forward to hug her Mom, "I love you Mom. Have fun tonight."

Lorelai held her close, "I love you too kid. Thank you for everything."

"Remember you deserve to be happy…" She whispered. "Let yourself be happy."

Rory pulled away and started to walk with April towards the food. Lorelai looked around the town square and smiled as she watched all of her friends laugh, talk eat and drink and she suddenly was starting to feel at peace again. She turned towards Luke and took a nervous breath.

"I can't believe you're out here during one of these crazy parties." She said with a shy smile.

Luke shrugged, "You've always been able to make me do crazy things."

She smirked, "Like our first Halloween together when I made you dress up like Captain Jack Sparrow when we passed out candy?"

Luke grimaced, "Damn it Lorelai, you know I only did that because I lost a bet and you swore you would never bring that up again!"

She giggled, "I'm just agreeing with what you said about being able to make you do all sorts of crazy things."

"Yes. Okay. We all know it. We don't have to relive every ridiculous moment." He said with a grimace.

She laughed and leaned forward, taking his hands in hers. "Well if you remember correctly, after all the trick or treater's were gone I got to live out my Captain Jack fantasy which I think you thoroughly enjoyed…"

He gulped nervously, "I plead the fifth…"

She smiled and looked down, she gently toyed with the necklace again. "I really love my necklace."

He smiled and reached up to push her hair out of her face. "I'm glad. I really was proud of you that night Lorelai…just like I'm proud of you right now."

She smirked, "I don't think you have much to be proud of right now Luke…"

He shook his head and reached out to squeeze her hand, "Of course there is. Lorelai you are so strong…the strongest woman I have ever known."

She felt her eyes well up with tears, "I don't feel very strong."

"Well you should…look how far you've come Lorelai." He whispered to her, "When bad things happen to me I shut the rest of the world out crawl away into my little cave. That's exactly what I did when things went bad for us…but I should have fought harder."

"You tried…" She whispered. "You came to me and said you would run off to Maryland but I had already screwed it all up."

"I still should have fought Lorelai…even then. I knew deep down that I had pushed you to him but I didn't want to admit it. I didn't want to admit that I had screwed up long before you did. I run away when things get tough because its easy. But you fight back." He said honestly.

"Not always…" She whispered.

He shook his head again, "Maybe not right away but you do. You always do and I love you for that Lorelai. I love everything about you but I admire that so much about you. I want you to remember how strong you are, but I also want you to know that I'm here now. I'm not leaving again. I promise."

Her hands slipped from the necklace slowly and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you so much."

He breathed her in gently, "I love you too."

She pulled away and wiped at a few tears, "Come on…I'm starving."

He chuckled, "One track mind…"

She shrugged, "Some things never change…"

He smiled and let her drag him towards the countless tables full of fried food.

* * *

An hour later, Luke had gone back to the grill to help Ceaser fill up the tables again with more food. Lorelai was standing with Miss Patty and Babbette as they munched on a plate of cookies.

"So sugah…I really hope you aren't mad at me for calling Rory." Babette said nervously. "I know you said you weren't but-"

Lorelai shook her head, "Oh Babette I'm not mad at all. I should never have asked you guys to leave that night anyway. I was just in shock ya know? I couldn't believe what had happened and I was scared…"

"I know. But I didn't want to do anything to upset you." Babette said, "But I was just so worried about ya."

"I'm very grateful for everything that you did. Really I am." Lorelai said reaching for her friends hand. "Thank you."

"You know…you and Luke look pretty close…" Miss Patty said with a smile.

Lorelai blushed, "He's been amazing through all of this. I don't know why…or how he's even able to look at me but I haven't felt this safe in a very long time."

"That man loves you honey. He always has." Miss Patty said with a sympathetic smile, "You two may have gotten side tracked but you found your way back to each other and now you are where you belong."

"He's been so damn sweet." Babette said smiling, "But to be honest I'm surprised he didn't beat the crap out of Christopher…I thought he might that first night."

Lorelai grimaced, "Don't think he didn't want too. But I told him he couldn't. He'd lose April if he did and I don't want that to happen."

"How's it going with the girl?" Miss Patty asked, "I know it was a issue for you guys before…but she's been here for a few days. That's good right?"

"It wasn't about April. It was about the fact that Luke and I didn't have the best communication skills." Lorelai said honestly.

"No kidding. It only took you two eight years to admit your feelings to each other!" Babette said with a sigh.

"Remember the look on his face when he heard that Lorelai wasn't marrying Max?" Patty asked Babette.

"Oh my goodness yes! And remember that time Luke tried to make it work with Nicole and he said he was going to move into the apartment with her? God Lorelai you were so upset but you wouldn't admit why!" Babette said.

Lorelai grimaced again, "God you two really do know everything that happens in this town…"

The blushed, "Oh sorry dear…we just…" Miss Patty smiled sincerely, "We just have always wanted you two to be happy. And we've known Luke since he was a baby…we've always worried about him."

"But when he found you we thought if he could just admit how he felt he could finally be happy." Babette said.

"I know…" Lorelai whispered softly. "I want him to be happy too…"

"Its always been hard for him sweetheart. He lost his parents at such a young age and he's always been afraid to let people in. Especially after Rachel left…" Miss Patty said.

"And came back and then left again…" Babette pointed out.

"And again and-" Patty started.

"I got it." Lorelai said with a sad smile, "The thing is…this time I think we both know that this is it ya know? We've tried being apart, we tried to pretend that we didn't want to be together but it just doesn't work. I love him and no matter what I'm sticking with him."

"Good. That's good honey." Patty said reaching for her hand. "You two are just so adorable together."

"And I mean clearly the man loves you, that was evident the moment he dressed up like Captain Jack that one Halloween!" Babette teased, "Oh the dreams I had that night…" She said with an lust filled glint in her eyes.

"Babette!" Lorelai said swatting at her arm playfully.

"How you ever managed to get him to do that I'll never know." She said with a smile, "But I sure am grateful you did. I'm sad we never got a picture of it though."

Lorelai smirked, "I have pictures…"

"Naughty girl!" Patty said happily, "You better share those!"

"Not a chance…" Lorelai said with a chuckle, "But…I will tell you he was really good at playing the part."

"Oh God where is Morey? I need to get out of here…" Babette said fanning herself.

Lorelai couldn't stop laughing as Babette ran off towards her husband leaving her alone with Patty.

"So how are you really sweetie?" Patty asked, "Rory said the case is coming together and that since you weren't actually married it should go quicker."

Lorelai nodded, "That's what my Dad said, yes. Hopefully it will be as quick as possible. I just want to put it all behind me and move on with my life, you know?"

Patty nodded, "Oh trust me…I know."

Lorelai looked around and then licked her lips nervously, "I don't know if it's my place to ask but…how did you get past it when it happened to you?"

Patty smiled, "Not in any healthy ways. I don't want to give you any advice because my ways weren't helpful. Besides, you have Luke and Rory and everyone in this town. All you need to do is focus on the people around you and remember we all love you. You deserve so much more than what that man did to you Lorelai and you need to remember that."

Lorelai nodded slowly, "I know. I just can't help but feel like I pushed him to this point you know? I was so stupid to agree to marry Christopher, I just…I was so sad and I think I thought I could force myself to love him so I would forget about Luke. But honestly it only made it hurt more."

Patty nodded her understanding, "I know. But nothing anyone does can permit someone laying his or her hands on you sweetheart. Christopher may have had a right to be angry but he had no right to hurt you like that. Besides…he's no angel. Clearly before this happened he had his own secrets and I think we all know he knew you didn't want to be married…he just swooped in at the opportune moment. He prayed on you when you were weak because he knew that was his only chance…you may have made mistakes but so did he. Unforgivable mistakes."

Lorelai was quiet for a moment, "Can I ask you something else?"

"You can ask me anything sweetie." Patty said reaching her hand out to squeeze her arm encouragingly.

"How have you been able to give your heart away so easily?" Lorelai asked, "I know I love Luke…I love him more than anything. I'm just afraid of ruining it all again. I don't think I'll survive it this time if I we don't find a way to fix it."

"Oh honey…" Patty said gently, "No one can predict what will happen. I can't say that things will always be easy for you two. Especially with everything that has gone on in the last year…you still have a lot to work on. But I believe in love Lorelai…and I believe that the two of you have a love that can make it through this."

"You believe in love even after everything you've been through?" Lorelai asked.

"I will always believe in love Lorelai. It is the purest most beautiful thing in the world. I may not have found the one in my life but I've had other kinds of love, which are just as great. I've had the love of friends, of a town and the love of dance and that was the love I was meant to have." She smiled softly and squeezed her arm again, "But you have the love of your daughter, your friends and a man and you can't let that slip away no matter how scared you might be. Take the chance sweetie…"

Lorelai smiled, "I think I will."

"Good." She smiled and looked out across the crowd again, "Oh good lord…Babette and Morey didn't even make it past the gazebo. Let me go break that up before they scare the kids for life."

Lorelai chuckled as she watched her walk away, she thought about what Patty had said. She knew that some people weren't lucky enough to find the kind of love she had with Luke. Even before they had gotten together her feelings for him had scared her to death. And even though things hadn't always been so good between them, the happy times definitely outweighed the bad times.

She didn't understand how he would ever forgive her for marrying Christopher but she believed him when he said he wasn't letting her go again. She knew they couldn't erase everything that had happened in the past few months but she knew they didn't have too. She knew their love was strong enough to make it through it all of this, and she knew that there was no life without Luke Danes.

"Hey are you having fun?" Rory asked interrupting her Mom's thoughts.

Lorelai smiled down at her daughter, "I am. I'm glad you all forced me to come tonight. You were right, I really needed to get out of the house."

Rory smiled and held up a plate for her, "Luke made Boysenberry pie. Just for you."

"He really is one of a kind that man." Lorelai said with a smile as she took the plate from her daughter.

"Yes he is." Rory smiled and watched her Mom closely, "How are you holding up?"

Lorelai smiled, "I feel a lot better today than I have in the last few days. I'm starting to think everything is going to be alright."

"That's because it is." Rory said softly, "You are so strong Mom, you always have been. You've always been so strong for me and I've never thanked you for that. But this time I want to be strong for you…I know you're worried about me missing school but I want you to know I'm here for you. Anything you need Mom…you know you can always count on me."

"When did you grow up?" Lorelai asked reaching up to stroke her daughters face, "I swear it was just days ago when you were dancing around the potting shed to Madonna and now you're about to graduate college. How the hell did that happen?"

Rory laughed, "Well I had a pretty amazing Mom who made the last 21 years so much fun they went by in a flash!"

Lorelai frowned, "Well if I ever do have another kids remind me to make their life extremely boring so it goes by extremely slow."

Rory rolled her eyes, "I'll keep that in mind." She paused for a moment before smiling, "You think you will have another kid?"

Lorelai's face flushed and she shrugged, "Oh honey I have no idea. I mean Luke and I have so many things to work on I don't think that's even something we could begin to discuss right now."

Rory nodded slowly, "True. But is it something you think you want?"

Lorelai swallowed hard, "I think maybe it is…" She paused, "How would you feel about that?"

"Mom…anything that would make you happy will make me happy. And you know how I feel about Luke…I want all of us to be a family. And I always did want a brother or sister." She shrugged, "I have Gigi but I never get to see her. And if you and Luke do end up together…I get April so that in itself is a sibling. But…I think I'd like a little baby brother or sister to play with too."

Lorelai smiled, "Good to know." She waited a moment, "You know you'll always be my first love right? You Rory Gilmore are the best thing I ever did. I don't ever want to imagine my life without you."

Rory smiled, "This is your chance Mom…your chance to finally be happy. Take it. Don't let anything stand in the way of it okay? Not this time."

Lorelai nodded, "I won't. I promise."

"Good." She said with a smile as she looked past her Mom, "I think its time you take Luke up on that dance…" She reached for her Moms hand and squeezed it gently before walking away, "Have fun."

Lorelai turned slowly and saw Luke walking slowly wards her, "Hey…" He whispered.

She smiled and placed the plate of pie down on the table beside her, "Hey…Ceaser okay manning the grill by himself?"

"I think he'll be okay for awhile. Most people are heading towards the desert table by now anyway." He said with a shrug.

She nodded towards her plate, "I appreciate that you made me some boysenberry pie…"

He smiled, "I have a full one back at the diner for you. Think you can walk away from this one for now?"

"It depends…what do I get if I walk away from it?" She teased.

"Dance with me…" He whispered holding his hand out to her slowly.

Her heart skipped a beat as she reached for him, "I would love too."

He smiled and led her out to the middle of the town square where other couples were dancing. Her heart was pounding in her chest as he pulled her up against him and placed one hand on her hip and took her other hand in his.

She leaned closer and rested her head on his shoulder, "Luke?"

He held her close and breathed her in, "Yeah?"

"Do you remember when you told me you bought the Twickham house? And how you talked about kids…" She whispered nervously.

His steps faltered for a moment but he quickly fell back in line, "Yeah…why?"

She pulled away just slightly to look at him, "Do you uh…do you still want all that? You know the marriage and kids and stuff?"

He smiled at her, "Lorelai…"

"I mean I know that day I told you Chris and I weren't actually married I told you I only wanted to be married once. I meant that I wanted to be married to you." She sighed nervously, "And it's probably way to early in all of this to even be discussing this all but I just…I feel like we've wasted so much time. And I think we need to be better about communication if we're going to try this again. I don't want to screw it up.

"Lorelai-" He tried again.

"And I know you have April now so I mean you are a Dad so maybe you don't want all that again and that's okay. I just want to know now…ya know so we don't get further into this and then realize we aren't on the same page. I don't want to hurt you again and I can't get hurt again because I know I won't be able to handle it." She said quickly continuing to babble.

"Lorelai I-" He said more forcefully.

"I just want you to know that I love you. And that I'm in. I'm all in and I'm so so sorry about everything that had happened. I want a future with you Luke. It's all I've ever wanted but I was to afraid before but I don't' want to be afraid anymore." She huffed, "I mean technically I'm more afraid now then I ever have been but the idea of losing you again scares me more than what happened with Chris. I just…I need you to know how I really feel…and what I really want. And I guess I need to know what you want too…even if its not the same thing I just need to know now before we go any further…"

"I want to marry you." He said quickly before she could interrupt him. "I want to marry you, and have kids with you. I want you to try and feed them all sorts of terrible junk food and fight with you about making sure they eat healthy. I want you watch you dress them up in ridiculous yet adorable outfits for Halloween. I want to watch your face light up when they open their presents on Christmas. I want to grow old with you and hound you about your coffee consumption until the day I die. That's what I want Lorelai. That's what I've always wanted. And yes there is a lot going on right now and we have things to work on but this is it Lorelai. This is it for us. If you're in…I'm in."

She let him lead her across the grass as they continued to dance, "So uh…we're on the same page?"

"I guess we are." He whispered reaching up to brush her hair out of her face.

"It's not to fast?" She whispered nervously.

"I mean we should probably wait until the case is over…" Luke whispered sadly, "But as soon as you're ready I'm getting a ring on your finger Lorelai." He raised an eyebrow, "And this time I'm doing the asking."

Lorelai felt the tears prickle in her eyes, but for the first time in a long time they weren't sad tears but happy tears. "God I love you."

"I love you too. And this time around…I'm not going to be afraid to say it." He said honestly.

She smiled and stroked his cheek, "Good, because pretty much everyone in Stars Hollow just heard you say that…"

He looked around and realized everyone was watching them, "Aw Geez…"

She laughed and held him close, "You taking it back Danes?"

He groaned and then looked down at her smiling face and pulled her closer, "No. I'm not."

She smiled and leaned forward to kiss him gently before whispering. "Good. Because there's no getting rid of me this time."

He laughed and pulled her close to try and kiss her again before Rory and April jumped up in between them.

"Alright you two, enough of the kissy faces. You owe your daughters a dance!" Rory said triumphantly, she turned to Lane and smiled.

'Express Yourself' by Madonna came blasting through the speakers and Lorelai couldn't help but laugh. "Madonna?"

"Just like in the potting shed, I even remember all the moves." Rory said with a smile as she twirled around.

"No way am I dancing to this." Luke said with his hands on his hips.

"Oh come on Dad." April said laughing, "You can't say no to us."

"Yes I can." He said standing tall in front of them, "I won't do this."

April looked over at Rory, "Is this one of the times where I use the pout you taught me?"

Rory smiled, "Not only are you going to do it but all three of us are going to do it."

Luke shook his head, "Oh no. No you won't. It's not gonna work. I won't do this."

Lorelai giggled and linked her arms with the two girls, "On the count of three?"

"One." Rory whispered staring straight at Luke.

"Come on…" Luke whispered nervously.

"Two…" April continued.

"This isn't fair…" Luke said shaking his head.

"Three…" Lorelai finished for them.

Luke stared helplessly as the three most important women in his life pouted in front of him. He groaned and tried to kick his feet at the ground attempting to look away from them.

"I can't believe you two taught her that." Luke said sternly. "This is just…I can't believe…" He groaned again and walked closer to them. "Damn it. One dance!"

The girls cheered triumphantly and Luke couldn't help but laugh as April and Rory twirled around and Lorelai pulled him close as she sang to him. Despite the fact that he hated everyone was watching and laughing at him he almost didn't care anymore. He was finally back where he belonged and he was pretty sure he'd do just about anything they might ask him to do if it meant they were happy. Even if it meant making a complete fool out of himself…as long as his girls were happy...he was happy.

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**So what did you think? I will try and update soon! I promise! **


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys, this is kind of a longer chapter than all of the other ones but I really like it and I hope you do too! Part of me was thinking of ending the story after this chapter but you let me know if you want more. If I do write more it probably won't be to much more but anyway, just read and let me know what you think I should do. Okay, thanks! Enjoy! **

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That Monday Lorelai was sitting at the kitchen table sipping her coffee as Luke finished cleaning up after breakfast. He was talking happily about their visit with April and how Anna had even agreed to start discussing options if she were to move to New Mexico. She smiled at him as he filled up her coffee mug before sitting down beside her with his tea.

"I think things are really good right now, ya know? I mean April really likes you and she can't stop raving about Rory and how she wants to visit her at Yale. Its funny how both of our kids ended up being so smart don't you think?" He said smiling.

To hear the excitement in her voice made her heart skip a beat. She was so incredibly happy for him and was relieved that he was finally sharing this part of his life with her. Knowing how happy he was she hated to bring up what she had been thinking about for the past few days. She didn't want to do anything to change how good things had been going for them.

"Yeah I guess it is pretty funny." She took another sip of her coffee, "She really is amazing Luke. I'm so happy that things are going well with her and that Anna is willing to negotiate. I know how important this is to you."

"I just don't want to lose her again. I missed out on so much with her in the first 12 years of her life. I want to make up for that as much as I can." He said softly.

She reached across the table and took his hand, squeezing it gently. "I know babe. I know."

"You know April seems really happy that we are back together." Luke said with a small smile. "She could see how unhappy I was when we were apart, she told me she was glad I finally pulled my head out of my ass and realized what I wanted. Not to pleased about the language she used but I get what she meant."

Lorelai chuckled, "Yeah she's definitely your kid. Very blunt and straight to the point."

He smiled, "I guess she does get that from me."

Lorelai leaned forward and caressed his cheek, "I like that you can talk to me about her now. I like that I know her. Thank you for letting me in Luke, it means more than you could possibly know."

He leaned into her touch and smiled, "I never wanted to keep you out of it all Lorelai. I was just really confused…you don't know how many times I wanted to go to you for advice. I guess I was just scared…"

"Of what?" She asked curiously bringing her hand back down to his on the table.

"I didn't want you to think I couldn't handle being a father. I wanted to prove to you that I could do it on my own ya know? I didn't want you to be afraid to have kids with me…" He whispered.

"Oh hon…" She said squeezing his hand, "I could never think that. You were so good with Rory for so many years. I knew you would always be an amazing Dad. That is one thing I have never worried about. I wish you could have told me how you were feeling…"

"I do too." He said with a sigh as he squeezed his hand, "But…we're here now? No more dwelling on the past. We agreed we need to look forward to our future."

She smiled at him, "Right. And we need to be honest with each other from here on out. About everything that we are thinking and feeling…"

"I agree." He said nodding his head adamantly.

"Which is why I'm going to tell you this now and I need you to hear me out before you freak out." She said quickly starting to feel nervous again.

He let out a puff of air, "Well this can't be good…"

She watched him shift in his seat and she tried to hold his hand even tighter, "Just…I need you to really listen and try and understand where I am coming from."

"Can you just tell me what it is? The suspense is kind of making it worse here and my brain is starting to jump to about a million different conclusions. None of which are good. But let me just say this…if you are trying to break up with me-" He started feeling the sweat begin to build on his forehead.

Lorelai jumped and tried to scoot her chair closer to him, "Oh no. No Luke that's not what this is about at all!"

He searched her eyes hopefully and nodded slowly, "Okay…"

"I just…I've been thinking a lot about the case…" She whispered as she licked her suddenly dry lips.

He raised an eyebrow, "Please don't tell me you are considering dropping the charges against that bastard!"

She shook her head and squeezed his hand again, "No. That's not it either. Please…please just let me say what I need to say and then you can tell me how you feel okay?"

He heard the plea in her voice and he sighed, he adjusted his cap with his free hand and nodded slowly. "Fine. Go ahead."

She tried to smile before she continued, "Okay. Thank you." Clearing her throat she rubbed his hand between hers, "I just…I have a lot of questions that I think only Christopher will be able to answer."

He started to understand what he was going to say, "No way Lorelai-"

"Let me finish." She said a more firmly, "You promised you'd let me talk first."

He grumbled and shifted in his seat again, he pulled his hand away from her and crossed his arms over his chest. "Continue…"

"I know you don't really want me anywhere near him and I don't really want to see him but I think I need to see him. I need to ask him how he could do this. I know he was angry and he had a right to be but I just…I never in a million years thought he could be capable of something like this. I know that you are insecure about my relationship with him-" She watched him grimace at her words but she pushed on before he could interrupt again, "But Luke I have known him for almost all of my life. He's always been there…he's Rory's father for God sake…"

"He's an asshole who doesn't deserve your time." He said through gritted teeth as his feet began to tap on the floor.

"Luke…" She whispered softly, "I know it sounds crazy but I really feel like the only way I'm going to get any closure is if I talk to him. I mean if the first time I see him is in the courtroom then I'm afraid I'll just fall apart. And I just need to see him face to face, I need to understand how we got to this point."

"Lorelai I just…I don't trust him." He said sighing as he leaned forward against the table, "I don't want you anywhere near him."

"I know that. I do. And I respect your feelings but I just I really think I need to do this. I know that he was angry about the letter and I know he had reason to worry about you and me but I need to understand how he could have done this. I have known Christopher for so long but I never thought he could do this…" She whispered. "I need to understand it if I'm ever going to be able to move on."

Luke let her words sink in for a moment before he ran a hand over his tired face, "I understand that you need closure…but I'm not sure this is the way to get it."

"Luke he's already in custody, he'll probably be in handcuffs when I see him and my Dad will be with me the whole time. He won't be able to touch me." She said trying to sound comforting.

"You already talked to your Dad about this?" He asked quickly trying to make sense of everything she was saying.

Lorelai nodded, "When he was over yesterday we discussed it while you said goodbye to April. He thinks it's a good idea and he said he would stay with me the whole time."

Luke looked at her softly, "I can go with you."

She shook her head, "No. We both know that won't end well Luke…you can't do anything to jeopardize your relationship with April. We've talked about this. And even though things are really good right now with April and Anna…it doesn't mean they can't change. I don't think Anna would be to pleased if you were arrested for assault."

He sighed feeling frustrated, "I don't want you alone with him."

"But I won't be." Lorelai whispered before she leaned into him again. "Luke, my Dad will be there and the guards. I just…I really need to do this. I think it will help us too because I'll be able to put everything behind me. Not just what Chris did but the fact that I went to him in the first place…do you understand?"

Luke took her hands in his and lifted them to his lips, "I hate that guy. I fucking hate him. I didn't think I could hate him more than I did when we first started dating but clearly I was wrong."

She smiled at him, "I know you hate him Luke. I know you do. But I just…I need to do this. I need answers…I need to just let it all go. I can't keep anything in anymore. I did that before with us and it cost us everything. I think I need to just be open about everything."

Lifting his head, he stared at her face and his eyes roamed over the bruise that was finally beginning to fade on her face. "I want you to be happy."

"Well I think in order for me to really be happy I need to be able to move on from all this. And this is the only real way I can think of to do that…" She whispered.

"And nothing I say is going to stop you from doing this, right?" He asked softly.

"You know I value your opinion but with this I think I need to do what I believe is best for me. But to be honest I think it's the best thing for us Luke. This might help me just let it all go and I'll finally be ready to just move on. Don't you want that?" She asked.

"Of course I do. I just wish there was another way for you do to able to get through this." He whispered sadly.

"I know." She leaned in and rested her head against his shoulder, "But I think this is the best thing for me to do. So…can you please respect my decision?"

Luke sighed and leaned against the top of her head, breathing in her scent he nodded slowly. "Your Dad will be there the whole time? And the guards too?"

"Yes." She whispered against his shoulder. "The whole time."

"And you'll call me as soon as you get out of there and come see me after?" He said pulling away from her to look in her eyes pleadingly.

She smiled and leaned up to caress his face, "Of course. You're going to be the first person I want to see."

"It's not that I don't trust you. You know that right?" He asked staring deep into her clear blue eyes.

She smiled sadly, "I wouldn't blame you if you didn't."

He leaned forward and kissed her gently, "We're moving on remember? No more thinking about the past."

She nodded slowly, "Right."

He held her face in his hands and pressed his lips against her forehead, "I love you so damn much Lorelai. So much it hurts sometimes. And I just hate thinking about what he did to you."

She held onto him tightly, "Nothing will happen to me. I promise. I'll be careful."

He kissed her forehead once more and then pulled away, pushing her hair out of her face. "Okay…"

She smiled up at him, "Okay?"

He sighed sadly, "Okay…"

She leaned forward and kissed her gently, "Thank you."

He nodded slowly, "When are you going?"

"My Dad is going to be here any minute…" She whispered shyly.

He chuckled and pulled away, "So no matter what I said you were going to go right?"

She smiled up at him, "You know me so well."

He groaned and stood up quickly, adjusting his cap as he went. "You are a piece of work, you know that?"

"And yet you love me…" She said beaming up at him as she stood up to face him.

He rolled his eyes; "God help me…"

She smiled and reached for his hand, "So you're really okay with this?"

He shrugged, "Okay as I can be. If this is what you think you need to do then I won't stop you. But I need to go to the Diner or something while you are there. If I sit here and wait I'm going to go crazy. If I'm busy I won't have as much time to think about it."

She nodded. "Okay. I promise I will call as soon as we are done. And then I will have my Dad drop me straight off at the Diner."

Luke stood holding her hand tightly as he watched her closely. He absolutely hated this idea, to be honest he hated leaving her side even for a minute since all of this happened. Part of it was because he was afraid something else bad would happen to her but it was also because he was afraid this wasn't all real.

He was so afraid that he was going to wake up and realize they were still apart and she was still with Christopher. He didn't ever want to let her go again, especially not if it meant she was going to Christopher. Taking a deep breath, he pulled her by her hand up against his body and held her close.

"Please be careful." He whispered into her long dark hair. "Please."

She wrapped her arms around his waist and smiled against his neck, "I will be. I promise."

He nodded slowly, still not letting her go. "I'm just so afraid to lose you again."

She shook her head from side to side, bumping against his chin as she did. "You won't. I can't be without you Luke Danes. I know that now."

He breathed a sigh of relief as he held her, he would have been happy to hold her like that forever but they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Reluctantly, Luke let her go and she smiled knowingly at him before walking out towards the front door. She took a deep breath before opening it to see her Dad standing on the porch expectantly.

"Hello Lorelai. How are you doing?" He asked softly as she stepped aside to let him in.

"I'm okay Dad. How are you? Did you talk to Mom about this?" She asked curiously as she shut the door behind him.

He smiled slightly, "Yes, she is not to happy about it but eventually she realized there was no talking you out of it. Like most things that is…" He said with a chuckle.

She smiled at him, "Well Luke isn't too happy about either."

"No he isn't." Luke said walking into the foyer to meet with them, "But like you said, there is no talking her out of most things."

Richard smiled at the man before him, "I can understand your hesitations about this Luke. But I actually agree with Lorelai about this, I think this will help her to be able to move on from everything. She will get closure from this."

"Maybe. But she's also going to give me a heart attack from waiting in the process." He said with a grumble as he grabbed his keys off the table beside the door.

Richard chuckled, "I can assure you she will be with me the whole time. I will not let anything happen to her. Christopher will not have any chance of hurting her again, I will make sure of that."

Luke took a deep breath, "Okay…"

"My daughters safety is the most important thing to me Luke. I would never do anything I thought was too dangerous. Christopher will be in handcuffs the whole time we are there." Richard said still trying to reassure him.

"Would it be to much to ask for the electric chair for punishment?" He said through gritted teeth.

"Luke!" Lorelai said both a shocked and semi-amused look on her face.

Luke could hear Richard chuckle, "He's a scumbag."

"I know…" She said with a soft smile, "But isn't that a little excessive?"

"I guess…" He said stubbornly before sighing again, "Alright let me just get out of here so I can't try and talk you out of it anymore. I know it's useless. But you remember what you said, you were going to call right away and come by the Diner afterwards."

Lorelai nodded, "I promise."

He nodded his head once, "Okay then. I'm leaving…I'll see you later." He shook Richards hand and then walked over to Lorelai placing a gentle kiss on her cheek before he left.

Richard smiled as he watched him go. "He really does love you."

Lorelai smiled, "Yes, he does. And I am so incredibly grateful for that…"

"Come on then…they are expecting us at ten and its 9:30 now." Richard said placing a hand on her back, "The sooner we get this over with the sooner you can come back to ease that poor mans worried mind."

Lorelai grabbed her coat and took a deep breath as she looked around the house once more. She knew there were a million reasons why she shouldn't do this but she also knew it was important. She needed to face Christopher, she needed answers and she needed to tell him things too. One issue she had always faced in her life was trying to hide from her problems. It was the Gilmore way…and it had gotten her into trouble in the past especially when it came to losing Luke.

She knew that in order for her to have a fresh start with him she needed to break free from the past and this was the only way to do that. She walked with her Dad to the car and tried to ignore the loud beating of her heart making her want to have her Dad drive her to the Diner instead…

* * *

At 9:55 Lorelai and Richard were all signed in to the prison and were being led into a cold dark room. There was a table set up in the center of the room with four chairs, two on each side. Her hands started to shake and her feet seemed to forget how to move, but luckily Richard must have sensed her apprehension. He put a reassuring hand on her back and smiled gently at her.

With his guidance she walked to the table and sat down beside him. A short time later, the door on the opposite wall opened and she couldn't help but gasp when she saw Christopher walk in the room. She knew he wouldn't be walking in in his regular clothes but to see him in a orange jump suit and cuffs around his hand was a truly strange sight.

He stared directly at her as he walked in with his lawyer and guard that escorted him to his seat. Lorelai didn't realize her legs were trembling until she felt her fathers hand ontop of her knee to calm her.

As soon as Christopher sat down he began to talk, "Hey Lor…"

She waited a moment and then licked her lips. "H-Hi Christopher."

He looked over her face and his eyes seemed to stop on the fading bruise on her cheek. "I never, ever meant for any of this to happen Lor. God I am so so sorry. When I found that letter I just…" He sighed, "I don't even know what happened I just couldn't stop myself."

Lorelai lifted her hands up to the table and folded them, finding it easier to speak to him when she wasn't looking at him. "Chris I know that some of the things I did weren't right. They weren't fair to you…but I never thought you would do something like this."

"I just…I wanted you to see me for once Lor. You were so wrapped up in Luke you never saw me. Even on our wedding night I knew you were thinking about him and it killed me." He whispered.

Lorelai closed her eyes tightly, trying to hold the tears in. "You mean the wedding that wasn't even real?"

She heard him sigh before she opened her eyes again, "I swear I didn't know it wasn't legal. Not until a month after we got home…I went to go file some paperwork on the house to make it so it was in our name. And then I was told that because we didn't have legal documents from here it wasn't legal. I know I should have told you but I knew if I did you would run…I knew you didn't want to be with me in the first place Lorelai. Don't you know how much that hurt?"

"So you just thought I'd never figure it out? Do you think I'm that stupid?" She asked suddenly feeling very angry.

"No. Of course I don't think you are stupid. I just…I didn't know what to do. I knew you didn't really want to be with me but I thought if we could be together and be happy then eventually you would want to stay with me. I thought that if things were good and then you found out the truth you might still want to stay with me." He said trying to make her understand.

"But why would you want to be with someone you have to try and force to love you?" She asked.

He stared at her for a moment, "You loved me once…didn't you?"

She sighed sadly, "You know I did…"

"Then what happened?" Christopher asked, "Where did it all go wrong Lorelai? I would have married you when you found out you were pregnant. Why couldn't you have just agreed to marry me? We would have been happy."

She shook her head, "No we wouldn't have. We weren't ready to be married Christopher."

"We weren't ready to be parents either but we still became them." He said angrily.

She shook her head, "No…I became a parent. But you didn't."

He gritted his teeth at her, "Only because you shut me out!"

"You know that isn't true!" Lorelai said shocked by his words, "You were allowed to see Rory whenever you wanted too. You chose to stay away as much as you did. How many times did you say you were coming and then I had to make up some excuse as to why you didn't show up?"

"That's because seeing you was to damn hard!" Christopher said slamming his still hand-cuffed hands down on the table causing Lorelai to jump and Richard to put a protective hand across her arms on the table.

"Inmate." The guard warned, "You only have a few minutes left…don't make me take you back to your cell before its over."

"Calm down Christopher…" His lawyer warned him, "You need to calm down or you are going to make this worse."

Christopher took a deep breath before looking up at her again, "Look I know I made mistakes Lorelai. I know that you were ready before Sherry got pregnant but I thought that I owed it to her to try and make it work."

"I know that…and its fine Chris. That's all in the past." She said shaking her head, "I forgave you for those things a long time ago."

"Why did you come to me that night if you didn't want me?" Christopher asked referring to the night after Lorelai had given Luke the ultimatum.

Lorelai felt the lump beginning to grow in her throat, "Because I needed a friend." She paused and wiped at the tears that had begun to spill out of the corner of her eyes, "You have been my friend for so long Christopher…no matter how hard I have tried I can't seem to forget how good we were at being friends."

"We have always been more than friends." Christopher countered.

"But maybe all we should have been with friends. Whenever we tried to be anything more it all got to complicated." She answered, "Maybe that is selfish of me to say but maybe it's the truth. I went to you that night because I needed to talk to someone who knew me…really knew me. And aside from Luke and Rory that person is you."

"I do know you…" Christopher whispered.

She nodded and wiped at her tears again and sniffled, "And I thought I knew you…but clearly I didn't. I never thought you could do something like this…no matter how bad things might have been. I never saw you as that guy Chris…"

"I told you…I needed you to see me." He whispered, she could feel his eyes boring into her as she continued to stare at her hands on the table.

"I saw you…but I saw you as someone totally different than the man I knew." She whispered, "God Chris I was so afraid…I didn't know what you were going to do to me. I have never been that afraid…never."

The room went silent as Christopher absorbed her words, "I didn't mean for any of it to happen. I just…I snapped."

Lorelai looked up at him, "I never meant to sleep with you that night…I never meant to hurt you either. Do you know that?"

He stared at her for a moment, "I guess so…"

"I know I took you down with me…and for that I am so sorry. I know we wouldn't be here if I hadn't of made the choices I made but…" She sniffled again, "Chris you had to of known that I was in no condition to make clear decisions that night. I honestly don't even remember it…I remember standing in front of your door and the rest is a blur. How could you have let it get that far? You say you know me…you say that you care but if you really cared you wouldn't have let it go to that place…"

"Lor…" He whispered sadly.

"That night I went to comfort you after your Dad died...we were both drunk but I never let it get there. You said things…I knew maybe that's what you wanted. But I knew even if Luke wasn't in the picture that that wasn't the way to comfort someone I cared about. How could you let it happen? I know I played a part in it but you had to have known it was wrong…" She whispered.

He sighed, "I did know it was wrong. But I couldn't help myself Lorelai. I've wanted to be with you for so long…and after your parents wedding I realized that you really did love Luke. I took advantage of the situation because I thought it was my last chance."

She took a deep breath and looked up at him, "I was so vulnerable Chris. I was in no shape to be making those type of decisions."

"I know. I know that." He paused, "I know you are angry with me and you have every right to be. But…do we have to go through all this? I'm not going to hurt you again. What if we just go see someone? What if we try and work through this?"

"Chris…" Lorelai whispered shocked by his words, she wasn't expecting this.

"I know you say you love Luke but didn't he hurt you too?" He asked her.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes but Chris-"

"Okay so he isn't a saint either. No one is perfect. You and I are supposed to be together Lorelai. You me and Rory…that's the way it's supposed to be. We can fix this. I know we can." He whispered.

Lorelai opened her mouth to respond but suddenly Richard's voice came booming through the room. "You will never be with my daughter again. You will never come anywhere near her or my Granddaughter ever."

"Dad…" Lorelai said reaching for his arm, she squeezed it gently. "Calm down."

"Richard you know that I love your daughter. You wanted us to be together at one time. Don't you want you want your daughter to be with the father of her child?" He asked him.

Richard glared at him, "I want her to be with an honorable man and you Christopher Hayden are anything but honorable!"

"And you think that Luke is an honorable man?" He said with a snicker, "He owns a Diner Richard! How's that going to look among your golf club buddies? Is he going to cater one of Emily's DAR parties with burgers and fries?"

"He owns his own business. He built it from scratch. He works hard in his community to help other people. When he learned that he had a daughter he didn't flit in and out of her life like you would! He fought to make sure that she knew who he was and that he would take care of her. Yes he has made some mistakes along the way with my daughter but he has taken care of her for years! He took care of her for all those years when you should have been the one doing it!" Richard yelled.

"Dad…" Lorelai pleaded with him.

"Sir I'm going to have to ask you to keep your voice down." The guard said.

"So that's what you want for your daughter? You want her to spend the rest of her life in some white trash little town and spend her life with the Diner man?" Christopher chuckled, "Man your standards have slipped in your old age Richard. The Richard Gilmore I once knew wouldn't stand for this!"

"Well then clearly you never knew me as well as you thought you did. The thing I would never stand for would be any man laying a hand on my daughter!" He yelled, "Yes it is true that at one point in time I wanted the two of you to be together. I thought it was the right thing to do. But you Christopher have showed me that I was wrong for so long…there are more important things than what other people think of you. I would be happy to introduce Luke to any of my friends because I know that he loves and protects my daughter unlike you. I would be embarrassed to show you off to my friends because you are nothing but a coward who has never worked hard a day in his life."

There was silence in the room as everyone absorbed Richard's words. Christopher and Richard seemed to be having a staring contest and Lorelai could feel the tension in the room. Licking her lips, she reached over to touch her Dad's arm and felt how tense he was.

Worrying about his heart, she leaned in to him and tried to talk soothingly. "Dad…I think maybe you should step outside for a minute. Get some air."

He didn't take his eyes off of Christopher when he answered, "I am not leaving you here with him."

"Dad it's okay…we won't be alone. Please…just for a minute. I have a few last things I need to say and then I want to leave. It will be okay…and I don't want you doing anything to hurt yourself." She whispered to him.

Richard snapped out of his daze and looked down at her, "Lorelai I-"

"It's okay Dad…" She whispered as she smiled at him, "I will be okay. I promise."

Richard sighed and then looked back at Christopher, "No matter what you say to her, I will never let her go back to you again even if she wanted too. You don't deserve her or Rory."

He stood up quickly so he could leave before he could change his mind again. When the door finally closed, Lorelai looked back at Christopher.

He stared at her, waiting for her to speak, "Look Chris…I am sorry for the part I played in this. You would never be in here if it weren't for me. But…you knew what we were doing wasn't right. You knew that I wasn't strong enough to say no. And I just…I can't forgive you for this. I can't forgive you for hurting me this way. I won't be one of those women who just lets it slide. I won't."

"Come on Lor…you know I love you." He whispered trying to reach for her but his handcuffs stuck to the side of the table, the sound of metal against metal startled him and he looked down at his hands finally realizing the severity of the situation.

"No Chris…you don't love me. You love the idea of me…of what we could have been all those years ago with Rory. But if you really loved me…you never would have let what happened happen that night and you never would have felt like you needed to lie to me about our marriage." She took a deep breath trying to remain strong, "If you really loved me you never would have been able to hit me…"

Christopher let her words sink in, "Lorelai…"

"For the part I played in this I am sorry. I never wanted to see you this way…because despite it all I do care about you. I have known you practically my whole life Christopher…and you gave me my greatest gift in life." She smiled thinking of her daughter, "You gave me Rory…and for that we will always be connected. But no matter what happens…if you go to jail or not and even if you get out…I don't want to see you…not ever again. This is goodbye…it ends here."

He shook his head, "You don't mean that."

She smiled sadly, "Yes I do. I should have done this years ago Christopher because you are the reason I have never been able to have a lasting relationship. I always felt that I needed to stay close to you for Rory but she is a grown up now. She doesn't need you and neither do I."

"She's my daughter. You can't keep me away from her!" He yelled.

She shook her head, "She doesn't want to see you. If she does she can make that decision on her own but you stay away from us Christopher. This relationship of ours is toxic…I see that now. I think I've always known it but I was too afraid to admit it. But this is it…this is how it ends. Goodbye Christopher…I hope that you are able to find whatever it is you are looking for. Despite it all…I do want you to find happiness."

She stood up feeling at peace with everything that happened, she began to walk to the door but she stopped when she heard his voice. "So now you just go to him?"

She stopped near the door. "Maybe it seems wrong to you…and I'm sorry if it hurts you but yes. Now I go to him because he is the one I am supposed to be with."

"You'll be back…you always come back to me and you know it." He said with such desperation in his voice she knew he was trying to convince himself it wasn't over more than convince her.

She turned back to him and smiled sadly, "Not this time Christopher. Goodbye."

As she turned the door knob she was faintly aware of the fact that he was yelling after her. But it didn't matter…she had gotten what she had come for. She had found her closure. She said the things she needed to say and felt that she was finally read to close the door permanently on Christopher Hayden.

She saw her father pacing in the hall, it was clear he was still no happy about leaving her alone. Smiling, she walked over to him and placed a gentle hand on his strong shoulders making him stop in his tracks.

He spun on his heels and looked down at her anxiously, "Are you alright? I thought I heard more yelling."

She smiled up at him, "Everything is okay Dad. It's all going to be okay."

Richard stared down at his daughter with admiration, "How are you always so strong Lorelai? You always pick yourself up no matter how hard you fall…"

She shrugged, "It's the Gilmore way isn't it?"

He chuckled softly, "I suppose it is…"

She nodded her head once, "Dad…all those things you said back there…" She licked her lips nervously before continuing. "Just thank you…for all of it. And for sticking by me…for supporting me and protecting me. It means more than you could ever know…you may think I am strong but I wouldn't have been able to do this all without you and Mom."

He smiled sadly at her, "I know that your Mother and I have often questioned your decisions in life. We have always thought we knew what was best for you…but clearly we were wrong. You know what is right for you…and from now on I will respect that. I promise you that. All I have ever wanted was to see you happy Lorelai…" He paused as he felt the lump grow in his throat, "I love you."

She didn't even try to hide the tears in her eyes, standing on her tip toes she wrapped her arms around his strong shoulders and finally felt him relax. "I love you to Dad. So much."

They stood there together for what felt like an eternity letting the years of anger and pain wash over them. None of it seemed to matter anymore now that they were here together. All that mattered was that they finally understood one another…

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Lorelai said her goodbyes to her father and promised to be at dinner on Friday at 7 o'clock sharp. She thanked him again before giving him one last hug and exiting the car as she began to walk up to the Diner.

She could see Luke walking around filling up mugs with coffee, she knew most of those customers didn't want more. But she also knew that when Luke was worried or upset the only way for him to deal with things was to keep moving. If he stopped long enough she knew that he would finally break and he wasn't ready to do that.

When the bells above the door jingled, she watched as his eyes shot up hopefully and she watched his whole body relax when he saw her. He seemed frozen in his spot as she walked from the door to his spot in front of the counter. He didn't move until he felt her arms wrapped securely around his neck, slowly he wrapped both of his arms around her with the coffee put still in his left hand.

"You didn't call." He whispered to her, not caring that many of his customers were watching them. "I was getting so worried…I was about to hop in the truck and drive there myself to make sure you were okay."

She nuzzled his neck slowly, "I'm sorry…my Dad and I were talking. It was nice…we had a lot of things we needed to say and it just kind of slipped my mind. I'm sorry I made you worry. But I'm here now…"

He closed his tightly and breathed her in, "You're here now…"

She nodded against him and then pulled back just enough so that she could look him in the eye, "Think you can get away for a few minutes?"

He nodded, "Sure." He watched her step aside towards the back curtain and he placed the pot down on the counter. "I'll be back in a bit Lane."

Lane smiled knowingly at him, "Take your time Boss. We got it covered." She winked at Lorelai who smiled back.

She waited until she felt Luke's hand slip into hers before they walked through the curtain and up the stairs. The door was unlocked so Luke opened it quickly and took two steps into the room before pulling her up against him again.

"Please don't do that again…" He whispered holding her close, "I was going crazy."

She could feel his heart pounding in his chest, "Oh hon…"

"I always hate being away from you but especially now…especially after all the time we have spent apart. And knowing you were there with him…I was afraid he would get you to change your mind. I was afraid I was going to lose you again." He said in a chocked voice.

"Luke…" She said rubbing the soft hairs at the back of his neck, "I love you. I love _you_. It's over with him…it's been over for years I just…I never fully let him know that. I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry Luke. I hate that you ever had to doubt that it was you I wanted…that I needed."

Luke pulled away slowly and reached his hands up to cup her face, "God I love you. I love you so much Lorelai. I should have told you everyday when we were together. I've felt it for so long it never occurred to me that you wouldn't know. I don't know how not to love you…I never said the words and I should have. I should have…I'm so sorry for that. And I'm sorry for pushing you away…for pushing you to him."

She saw tears in his eyes, something she rarely ever saw. She had seen him cry really only one other time she could think of and that was after his dark day when he had come to find her. Very early in the morning he had come into her house and crawled into bed with her, at first she was startled but when she saw his tear filled eyes she had let the questions die on her lips. She only held him close and let him cry as much as he needed too and never said a word.

To see him like this broke her heart, but it also let her know that he truly did love her. She never thought she was the type of woman who would need her man to tell her he loved her everyday. But to never hear it…she had knew now that wasn't good. But staring into his eyes at this moment, she could feel all the love he felt for her and all the hurt from the time they had spent apart.

"It's over." She whispered, she saw his eyes turn wide with panic and she continued hoping to soothe his worries, "With Christopher I mean…I said what I needed to say. That part of my life…it's over. Completely over…I swear."

"But he's Rory's father…" He whispered sadly, he felt like they had this conversation many times before. "He'll never fully be gone."

She shook her head, "No it's different now Luke. I thought I needed to stay connected to him for Rory's sake but Rory is an adult now. She can make her own choices and if she decides she wants to talk to him then that is on her. It doesn't have to do anything with me. I always felt that I needed to be the buffer between them before but I know now I can't be. My relationship with him in any sense of the word was toxic…for both of us. We weren't good for each other, as friends or as anything more…it just doesn't work and it never will. I don't love him Luke. I loved what I thought we could have been when Rory was younger…I don't love him. I love you. He's gone…that's it. I said my goodbyes, he knows what I feel. He knows I want you and he knows I can't forgive him for this. This is it…if you say you want me and you want to give this a try I swear once the case is closed I never look back in. I'm in Luke. I'm _all_ in."

Luke leaned forward and rained kisses across her forehead, cheeks, and nose and finally found her mouth. "I am _all_ in Lorelai. _All_ in." He sniffled slightly and started to walk away, "Just uh…just stay right there for a second."

She watched him pull away and walk through his apartment; she shivered at the loss of contact. "Wait. Where are you going?"

"Just wait…don't move. Stay there." He said as he walked towards the safe quickly and began putting in the code.

"Luke what are you doing?" She asked wanting to feel his arms wrapped around her.

He chuckled despite the tears still welling up in his eyes, "Patience crazy lady."

She huffed loudly and watched him intently as he took something out of the safe and closed it behind him. He walked towards her with purpose and stood in front of her, tall and strong and she felt her heart began to beat quickly in her chest. But it wasn't out of fear like when she had seen Christopher, it was because she felt so much emotion and love standing before this man.

"Luke…" She whispered softly, wanting to understand what he was doing.

"Maybe it's to quick…maybe you think I'm crazy but I just…" He sniffled again, "I can't…I can't wait anymore Lorelai. I can't…we've waited for so damn long. No more…no more waiting." He whispered as he held up a small black box to her.

She inhaled sharply. "Luke…" Her hand went to her mouth as she tried to keep from trembling, her knees suddenly felt very weak. "Oh my…"

"Since the day you came tearing into my Diner with Rory…I haven't been able to get you out of my mind. God knows I have tried…for years I tried to pretend I didn't love you. Even when we were together there were times when I tried to pretend I didn't love you as much as I did because it scared me. I've tried to be with other people…tried to stay busy so I'd forget you but I can't Lorelai. No matter what I can't forget you…" He whispered.

He looked up at her and saw the tears falling freely down her cheeks but she was smiling up at him. He opened the box and he heard her gasp again as she saw the ring that was lying inside.

"I don't want to forget you Lorelai. I just…I want to be with you. I want to be with you always…and I promise this time around I'll tell you I love you whenever you need me too. I will fight for us this time around…I'll talk to you about anything and everything. I won't let you walk away…I'll even let you eat pie and drink coffee in bed even though I think its gross." He said with a smile.

"Luke…" She said as she started to laugh through her tears.

"I'll let you call me really embarrassing names in front of Miss Patty, Babette and the rest of the crazy people that live in this town. I'll let you come by the counter and talk on your cell phone in the Diner. I'll let you drag me to as many town meetings and festivals as you want. And I'll even dress up on Halloween again if that's what it takes for us to be together. I don't care Lorelai…I don't care what I have to do as long as it means you are with me. I just…I can't live without you Lorelai and I don't want too. Not anymore…I need you." He said all this with such emotion Lorelai thought her heart was going to explode.

"Luke…" Her voice cracked as she spoke, "Just…just ask me…please just ask me."

He smiled and pulled the ring out of the box and held it out to her, "Will you marry me?"

She breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, holding her hand out to him. "Yes. Oh God yes. A million times yes!"

He smiled happily and slid the ring on to her finger and pulled her up against him, cradling her face in his hands he kissed her passionately. He felt her laughing and crying against him as he pulled away and brushed the hair out of her face.

"I just…I couldn't wait anymore…I'm sorry." He whispered as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

She shook her head and held the back of his head close, "Don't even try and apologize. I love you so much. I don't want to wait anymore either Luke…you're right. We've wasted so much time…I don't want to waste anymore."

He smiled and kissed her again, "You're sure?"

"Absolutely sure." She smiled and pulled her left hand away to look at it, "But…where did you get this ring? It's a different ring…" She whispered.

He smiled at her, "It was my Mothers…"

Her eyes went from the ring back up to his face, "Really?"

He smiled, "Liz had it…my Mom gave it to her years ago I guess. She was going to give it to me for you the first time but you jumped the gun and proposed before she could." He teased, "And then I bought the other ring so she kept it…"

"But then how do you have it now?" She asked feeling confused.

He rubbed circles against her hips as he continued to speak, "After she had Doula, I went to her house one night to stay with her while TJ visited some friends. She did a good job at not bringing you up for awhile…but finally she asked what happened. I ended up falling apart and I told her everything…and believe me she wasn't too happy with me when she realized my part in it."

"Oh Luke…" She whispered rubbing his arms encouragingly.

"She tried to tell me to go fight for you but I just…I knew you were with Christopher and I couldn't seem to find the courage to try. I told her it was over…no matter how hard she pushed it I told her it was just over. But when I went to say goodbye to the baby, she slipped the box in my coat pocket with a note." He said.

"What did the note say?" She asked curiously.

Luke smiled and walked back to the safe and took out the small piece of paper and held it out to her. She took it from him and unfolded it; she studied the words carefully and smiled when she read. _'Its not over. You two were written in the stars…stars never end and neither will your love.'_

"She's a smart one that sister of yours…" She whispered as the tears began to fall again.

Luke nodded in agreement, "Yes she is. I have never given her enough credit…" He smiled and took the note back and put it in his pocket. "I never said anything to her about it…but I didn't have too. I just kept the ring and the note and every once and awhile when I would see you around town or think about you I'd take it out and think about what it would be like to be with you again."

"God I love you…" She whispered holding onto him tightly again.

"I didn't think if we did get back together that it would be like this…" He shook his head, "I never wanted this for you…but I just…I need you Lorelai. I need you so much it scares me sometimes. I need this…I need us."

"You have me." She whispered caressing his face gently. "You have me Luke…and you will always have me. I'm yours."

He rested his forehead against hers and smiled, "Do you think everyone will think we are crazy for going this fast?"

"Maybe…but I don't care. All I care about is you. But to be honest…they might actually relieved that we finally figured it out." She said with a smile, "I'm sure Sookie already has my cake all planned out and is just waiting for me to let her know she needs to start baking it."

He chuckled. "You're probably right."

She licked her lips again and then pulled her hand away to look at the ring, "I do want this Luke. More than anything…but I still think we should wait until after the case to actually get married. My Dad said it should be within a few weeks. I just...I want that out of the way before we start our life together. Is that okay?" She asked nervously, afraid to break the spell they seemed to be under.

He nodded, "I think that's best. We need to start our marriage on a happy note, not with something bad lingering ahead of us. I can wait…as long as I know that we are actually going to get married."

She smiled at him, "Oh you are not getting rid of me this time mister. You're stuck with me, coffee addiction, terrible movie watching, incessant talking…you're stuck with all of it!"

"Good." He whispered before pulling her up against him crushing her lips again this.

She giggled happily, "Do we get to celebrate now?"

He nodded as he began to push her backwards towards his bed, "Mhm…" He mumbled against her lips.

"But won't Lane and Ceaser miss you?" She teased as his lips began to travel down her neck.

"Don't really care. But I'm pretty sure Lane wasn't expecting me to come back today anyway." He carefully lay her down on his bed and held himself over her. "Besides…this is more important. You are more important. The most important thing…always."

She reached up to caress his face. "I love you Luke Danes." She leaned up to kiss him, "Love me…"

He smiled sweetly down at her and kissed her gently, "Always Lorelai. I will always love you."

As he lay her back on the bed, all their worries, all their fears and all the pain that they had felt in the last year melted away. There was still a long way to go but they knew they could make it through it all as long as they were at each others sides. Right where they belonged…

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it because I really like this chapter. I think it was important for Lorelai to confront Christopher and say what was on her mind. She always said she was done with Chris but they had so much history. She needed to go and lay it all on the line and let him know it was over. I felt like she always thought she had to stay connected to him not only for Rory but because she felt like he needed her too. But he took advantage of the situation when she went to him in Boston after the ultimatum. He didn't love her the way she deserved and she needed to see that and finally close that chapter on her life.**

**ANYWAY...I hope you liked it and let me know if you think I should end it there or write more. Thanks so much for your support and reviews! :) Hope you are all having a great weekend! **


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey guys, it seems like you want me to continue so I will write for as long as I can. After I wrote this I realized it might be a little sappy but whatever I still like it. And a lot of it I think is important for the continuation of the story. I'll tyr and update soon! Thanks for all the reviews :) **

* * *

Lorelai woke up the next morning wrapped up the familiar white sheets and plaid comforter on Luke's bed. Her eyes fluttered open only a few times but she still saw that Luke was lying on his side watching her intently. She sighed happily and felt the smile growing on her lips.

"This feels wonderfully familiar…" She mumbled as she reached for him, his warm skin making her heart skip a beat.

He pulled her hands up from his chest to his lips and kissed them gently, "I kept waking up to make sure you were still here. And then I would see the ring on your finger and I knew it was real."

She smiled and scooted closer to him, she leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips. "It's real. This is happening and you aren't getting rid of me again. So you better decide now if you can actually handle all the crazy. I will warn you though that if you do try and get rid of me I will not take it well and you may wake up with a horse's head in your bed tomorrow morning."

Luke chuckled, "I wasn't aware that you were Italian."

"My Mother had a brief affair while on a trip to Rome. We don't mention it much." She said with a casual shrug.

He laughed again, "You really are insane, you know that right?"

She beamed up at him, "I do. But you do realize YOU asked me to marry you so if I'm insane what does that make you?"

"Hopeless." He said with a smirk, "I apparently find insanity attractive in a woman."

"In any woman?" She said with a raised eyebrow challenging him.

He smirked, "I probably should have stuck with the first wife…"

"Luke!" She squealed slapping his chest before sitting up, pulling the sheet around her. "You jerk!"

He smiled up at her and pulled at her arm, "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. You know I regretted that marriage more than anything."

She pouted down at him, "You are so mean."

He reached up and pulled her down on the bed, rolling her over so she was underneath him as he hovered over her. "Lorelai…we've talked about this. You know I married her because I thought I'd never be with you…just like what you did with Chris."

She pouted more, "Only yours was actually legal and she actually was Mrs. Danes."

"If we had stayed together she never would have changed her name. It never felt like we were married…it felt like a gigantic mistake. And up until the night I let you go it was the biggest mistake I made. I never loved her; I never could have loved her. Simply because she wasn't you…You will be Mrs. Danes not her," He paused, "That s if you want to take my name…"

She smiled lovingly up at him, "Yes. I want to take your name."

"Yeah?" He said grinning down at her as her words washed over him.

"I want the world to know I am taken by the most amazing man in the world." She said, her eyes and smile beaming up at him. "Mrs. Lorelai Gilmore Danes."

He leaned down and kissed her gently, "God that sounds good…"

She kissed him again, "It sounds perfect."

He smiled again and then rolled on to his side and pulled her up against him, she rested her head on his chest. Her hand slid up around the hard muscles of his stomach and she played with the soft hairs against his chest.

"Think I should head downstairs in your flannel and announce our reengagement?" She teased.

Luke chuckled thinking about the morning after their first date, "I still can't believe you did that…"

"How was I supposed to know the Diner could open without you? It says your name outside on the door doesn't it?" She said lifting her head up to look at him with an exasperated sigh.

He continued to laugh, "You've been to the Diner when I wasn't working. I assumed you would know that it does run without me occasionally."

She rolled her eyes and then leaned her head against his chest again, "Well…whatever. I gave the town a good show."

He groaned, "Don't remind me. Andrew and Kirk kept staring at you like a piece of meat for a week. I wanted to kill them."

She giggled, "Oh let 'em dream…"

"I don't want any man or woman for that matter dreaming about you in any way but especially not in a sexual way. Those are reserved only for me." He said with a stubborn pout.

She smiled and nuzzled her nose against his chest, "You dream about me Burger Boy?"

He groaned as he felt her fingers wander south, "Lorelai I've been dreaming about you for years. No other woman has starred in any of my dreams since the day you walked into the Diner."

"Do you often have dirty dreams about me?" She said lifting her head up again to smile down at him.

He shrugged, "Maybe I do…maybe I don't."

She moaned happily and leaned forward to kiss him, "You should share those dreams with me…I'd be happy to let you live out your fantasies."

"You are my fantasy Lorelai…always have been…always will be." He whispered in a husky but honest voice.

"Smooth talker…" She said with a smile as she leaned down to kiss him again, "Man I love you…"

"Good. Cuz I love you too…" He said holding her face in his hands, "You know, what you said about telling the town…"

She stared down at him, "What about it? Do you not want to tell them?"

He shook his head, "No. That's not it. I want to tell them but I just think we should tell Rory first…and April too."

She smiled, "You're right."

"You should know by now I'm always right…" He teased, tickling her sides.

She rolled her eyes, "I wouldn't go that far…"

He chuckled, "Do you want to tell Rory alone or do you want me to be there? She obviously didn't find out in the ideal way last time…"

She shook her head and sighed sadly, "No…she didn't. But no I don't want to do it alone, I think we should do it together."

"Do you think she will be okay with it? Her approval means a lot to me and I don't want her to think we are moving to fast…" He whispered.

"I don't think she will think that. I think she will be happy for us…she wants me to be happy and she knows you make me happy. And more than that she adores you Luke, you have been such a big part of her life for so long. It didn't just hurt me when we were apart…she missed you too. She just didn't say anything because she knew bringing it up would hurt me…but she really did miss you. I know she did." She said caressing his face softly.

"So you think she'll be happy for us?" He asked nervously.

"Yes. She will be happy for us. Luke she has always wanted you to be a part of our family…she told you that. She knew we were supposed to be together long before I realized it." She said honestly. "She loves you Luke."

"Well I love her too…you know I'd do anything for her." He said honestly.

Lorelai nodded, "I know that. And that makes me love you even more."

He smiled up at her, "Good. So we'll tell her first."

Lorelai nodded, "And what about April? We'll have to tell Anna too…" She paused nervously, "We haven't seen her since all of this happened…"

Luke could sense her fears and insecurities, "I know what you are thinking. But I'm not going to let Anna make the decisions this time around. You are going to be my wife and it doesn't matter what she thinks. You are a part of my life which means you will be a part of April's…don't worry."

She smiled at him, "Okay…" Slowly she lowered her head to his chest again and then lifted her hand to stare at the glistening ring on her finger. "This ring really is beautiful…I just want to stare at it all day."

He smiled and ran a hand down her bare back, "You sure you like it? I can get a new one if you want. I uh…" He cleared his throat nervously, "I threw the old one in the lake when Rory gave it back to me…"

She held him closer, hating that he had felt such pain, "Oh hon…"

"I tried to keep it for awhile but it just hurt to much knowing it wasn't on your finger anymore." He whispered honestly. "So after a few too many beers one night it took a little dip. But I can buy a new one if you want…something more modern."

Lorelai shook her head, "No Luke, this one is perfect. It is so beautiful, and knowing that your Mom wore it makes me love it that much more."

He smiled as he traced circles on her back, "My Dad saved up money for a year to buy that ring."

"I thought you said they only dated for a year before they got engaged?" She said lifting her head to look up at him curiously, "That doesn't make sense…"

Luke smiled, "He knew after their first date that she was the one."

Lorelai unexpectedly felt her eyes well up with tears, "Really?"

He nodded his head proudly, "He said when he dropped her off at home that night he realized he could never spend another night with any other woman. So he went home and started putting money in a jar to save up for the ring."

"Wow…" Lorelai whispered as she lay back down again on his chest, lifting her hand to stare at the ring again she continued to talk. "God I wish I had met your parents…"

Luke felt the lump beginning to grow in his throat, "I wish you could have met them too. They would have loved you…I know they would have."

"I hope so…" She whispered softly, "I would want their approval…"

"They would have thought you were too good for me." He teased trying to hide the emotion in his voice.

Lorelai shook her head, "No way. You're the one that's too good for me."

He lifted his hand from her back to start caressing the back of her head, "I mean it though. They really would have loved you…I wish I could see you with them. That would make me so happy…to have my favorite people all together."

"You miss them everyday don't you…" It was more of a statement than a question.

The lump began to grow in his throat again, "Every minute of everyday…just like I missed you when we weren't together."

"I missed you too…" She said nuzzling his chest, breathing in the familiar scent of him. "I missed you so much Luke…"

He held her close for a few moments in comfortable silence before he started to talk again, "If I asked you to go somewhere with me…would you do it?"

Curiously, she lifted her head and rested her chin on his chest, "It depends. If you ask me to go the gym I can tell you the answer to that will always be no."

Luke chuckled and ran a hand through her dark curls, "Well obviously."

She smiled up at him and ran her hand up his arm as she stared up at him, "But where were you talking about?"

"Well…" He paused and let out a nervous breath, "I totally understand if you think its weird or it makes you uncomfortable…but…I just uh…"

"Hon just ask me…" She said as she reached up to stroke his cheek. "I'd do anything for you."

He licked his lips nervously and continued to twirl her hair, something that always calmed him. "Would you go to the cemetery with me? I don't really like to go…usually just once a year but I don't know…" He shrugged, "I just…I don't know it might be nice to have you there…it would feel like I could introduce you to them. I'm sure that sounds ridiculous because they aren't actually there…you know what never mind." He said pulling away and rolling to his side to try and get up.

"Luke wait…" She grabbed his shoulders and tried to pull him back to her but he pulled away, "Stop. Please stop."

He sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, hanging his head in shame. "Just forget I even said it okay? It's stupid."

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders from behind and kissed the side of his face. "Luke it is not stupid. Of course I will go with you…I want to meet them. It's not the ideal way but it's the best we can do…you tell me when you want to go and I'm there."

He sighed again and reached up to hold her hands against his chest, "Really?"

She kissed his cheek again, "Really."

He smiled and turned slowly so he could look her in the eye. "Thank you…"

She smiled and held his cheek in her hand as she kissed him gently. "Nothing to thank me for."

He leaned her back against the bed again and held himself above her, "Can we go in a little while? I want to lie here with you for a little while longer…"

"I like the sound of that…" She smiled as he lay beside her and pulled her up against his side and made sure to held her extra close.

* * *

An hour later, Luke called Lane and Ceaser and told them to take the day off. He was closing the Diner for the day to spend time with Lorelai. They had eaten breakfast and showered before driving in the truck to the cemetery. Luke parked and then sat for a minute thinking, Lorelai sat patiently waiting until he was ready. After a few minutes, he looked over at her, smiled and then opened the door of the truck. She picked up the flowers she had bought for them to place on the grave and then followed him.

She took his hand as he led her towards a large oak tree that shaded the tombstone of his parents. She felt him tense for only a moment when they stopped in front of it, she studied their names carefully. Then she pulled away slowly and bent down to place the flowers against the cool, grey stone.

Standing back up, she linked her arm with his and waited once more for him to speak, "Uh…hey Mom and Dad. Sorry it's been awhile since I visited last…" He cleared his throat and nervously kicked at the dirt at his feet. "But I…I wanted to introduce you to someone. Someone I think you both would have really liked…in fact I think you would have loved her."

She smiled beside him and squeezed his arm encouragingly; he looked back over at her and smiled softly. "Mom, Dad…this is my fiancé Lorelai. I know you've heard me talk about her before…and I know told you we were engaged before but…" He paused, "I've never brought her here. And…this time around I want to do things differently. I want to share everything with her…something I haven't been able to do before. But…she's the one…she's smart and funny and so incredibly giving. She is an amazing mother and friend, an incredible business woman and she's the only person that has ever been able to pull me out of my shell."

By now, Lorelai was crying, unable to hold back any longer. "I waited a long time to be with her…too long and I don't want to wait anymore. I want to be with her and have a life with her like the two of you had. I wish that you could be here to meet her in person…that would make me so happy. I uh…" He sniffled, trying to hold in his own tears, "I miss you both so much…and I uh…" He coughed softly, "I love you…"

Lorelai wiped her tears away and held him closer; she rested her head against his shoulder and let him think in silence for a few moments. Then she cleared her own throat and turned towards the stone.

"Mr. and Mrs. Danes…I wish I could say this in person…but I want to thank you for raising the most amazing man I have ever known. Even though he pretends to be this tough, uncaring man he is actually the most compassionate man I have ever known. He would do anything for anyone and he never asks for anything in return." She could feel Luke staring at her out of the corner of his eye but she continued to only stare at the stone in front of her. "He took care of me and my daughter for years…he was always there. No matter what happened I knew that I was never alone…I wish I hadn't of wasted so much time trying to pretend I didn't feel the way I do. But…I was afraid." She sniffled again, "And I know that I have made many mistakes...truthfully I'm not even sure I deserve him but I…"

She paused, the lump in her throat was making it hard for her to speak. She took a deep breath and glanced over at him and smiled softly. "I want you to know that I love him more than anything…I have tried to live my life without him but I couldn't do it. And I don't want to do it…your son makes me happier than I ever could have imagined. And I promise…" She turned back to the stone, "I promise that for the rest of my life I will continue to love him…I promise I will take care of him and cherish him everyday until I die. Thank you…thank you for creating such a wonderful man. I don't know what I would do without him…"

When she finished, she turned back towards him and saw the tears welling up in his eyes. She let out a ragged breath and then leaned forward and held his face in her hands, he leaned all the way in and kissed her.

"Thank you for coming with me…" He whispered in a ragged voice.

She rested her forehead against his, "Thank you for wanting to bring me here…"

Luke nodded slowly; he looked back at the tombstone and took a step closer to it. He still held her hand in his as he put his free hand on top of the stone. She studied him carefully, for a moment she thought he was going to say something else. Instead he just rubbed the cool stone for a moment and then cleared his throat and turned back towards her.

"Uh…do you want to drive to go see Rory? Probably better to do this in person. And I'm not sure this can wait until Friday…you know this town. Patty and Babette probably have cameras installed in the Diner and your house to keep tabs on us." He said.

Lorelai smirked, "Dirty…they would totally do that to be able to watch us while we-"

"Don't even finish that sentence." He said holding his hand up, "Couldn't even resist in a cemetery huh?"

She smirked, "You're the one that said something dirty!" She teased.

He turned back to towards the grave, "So that's Lorelai in a nutshell…"

She laughed and playfully punched him in the stomach, "I bet they would have agreed that that one really wasn't my fault…"

Luke smiled and reached for her hand again, "Come on crazy lady…"

She looked over his shoulder, "It was nice to finally meet you Mr. and Mrs. Danes…I meant what I said. I'm going to take care of him…forever."

He beamed down at her and then looked over to where she was looking, "Goodbye Mom and Dad…I'll come again soon."

She took his hand and let him lead her back towards the truck. She knew how emotional it was for him to take her here, and she knew better then to press him to talk about his feelings at the moment. Instead, she sat with him in his truck and sat in the comfortable silence, glad they were finally back on track.

* * *

An hour later, they pulled up to Rory's apartment building, Lorelai had called to make sure that she would be home. Lorelai led him up the stairs to Rory's floor and then took a deep breath and knocked on her daughters door.

After a moment, the door opened and Rory smiled at them. "Hey! I didn't realize you were both coming. What a nice surprise, come in!"

Lorelai smiled and took his hand leading him into the apartment, "You're not going to be missing any classes or anything right?"

Rory shook her head, "I only had a 8:30 class today. My seminar was cancelled, so I'm yours for the rest of the day if need be. What's going on?" She asked as they sat down, Luke and Lorelai on the couch and Rory on the love seat across from them.

"Well…we wanted to talk to you about something." Lorelai said pulling at her shirt nervously, "And we wanted to do it in person instead of over the phone…"

"Not that I'm not happy to see you guys, but I am coming home this weekend and I'll see you first at Friday night dinner. What's up? Is everything okay?" Rory asked starting to feel concerned, "Is it something with the case? Did Dad do something?"

Lorelai shook her head and took Luke's hand in hers, letting it rest on her knee. "No. No sweetie everything is okay…" She glanced over at Luke, "Everything is great actually."

Rory watched them for a moment before her face erupted in a smile, "You're engaged…"

Lorelai quickly looked back to her daughter and Luke's eyes widened, "How did you know? I took the ring off before I came in here so it wouldn't tip you off."

Rory's smile grew, "So I'm right? You're engaged?"

Lorelai nodded slowly, "Yes. We're engaged."

Rory squealed and then jumped up off of her seat, she launched herself at the two of them as they tried to catch her. "Whoa!" Luke said.

Lorelai laughed as she held her daughter, "So I guess this means you are okay with this then?"

"Are you kidding?" Rory said pulling back to sit on the coffee table between them, "On every birthday since I was 12 I have wished for the two of you crazy kids to get married! And I mean…I know you were engaged before but things were so different…" She shrugged, "Not just with you guys but with me too…this time I'm here from the beginning and you two are going to get married no matter what. Even if I have to drag you to the alter myself."

Lorelai smiled at her daughter, "I wouldn't worry…I'm not letting him get away this time."

Rory smiled and then turned to the man she had always thought of as a father, "What about you? You going to let her walk away again?"

Luke shook his head, he reached forward and took Rory's hand, they didn't often have much physical contact but he needed to assure her. "Rory…I promise you that this time around things are going to be different. I love your Mom…I've loved her for a very long time…" He smiled at her shyly, "And I love you too…this is all I've ever wanted. I swear to you that this time we are really getting married and I am going to take care of her and you…no matter what."

Rory smiled, "I know…I just wanted to make sure."

"You don't think we're going to fast or anything? I want to make sure that you are totally okay with this." Lorelai said, "Because Luke and I have talked about this and we are going to wait until after the trial but not much longer after that…we really want this. We don't want to wait anymore…we want to start our lives together."

Rory nodded, "I think it will be good to wait until after the trial. You don't want to go into your marriage with this hanging over your heads. You need a clean, fresh start. But no I don't think you should wait much longer than that…you've waited long enough."

"And you'll be my maid of honor of course, right?" Lorelai said with a smile as her eyes shined with tears.

Rory beamed at her Mother, "Well I would hope you wouldn't ask anyone else!"

Lorelai smiled again and leaned forward to hug her daughter, "I love you kiddo."

"I love you too Mom." She said hugging her Mom closely before she pulled away and looked at Luke. "And I…I love you too Luke. I hope you know that."

He smiled and reached for her hand, he squeezed it gently. "I do."

"No see that's what you are supposed to say to Mom when you guys are up on the alter…" Rory teased, she knew these kinds of things were difficult for him.

Lorelai laughed and Luke only shook his head, "God you are so like your mother it's actually terrifying."

Rory smiled and shrugged, "And you get to spend the rest of your life with both of us! Lucky you!"

Luke groaned, "Yeah…lucky me."

Lorelai scoffed and slapped him playfully, "You bet your ass you are lucky! You my friend get to spend the rest of your life with THE Gilmore girls. Luckiest. Man. Alive."

He smirked at them, "I guess I can't really argue with that…"

Rory smiled, "See I know this time around its going to stick." She paused and then looked back at her Mom, "And once this whole trial is behind you…you two are going to have a happy and long life. I know it…"

Lorelai smiled as the tears burned in her eyes again, "I hope you're right kid."

"I know I'm right." She said squeezing Luke's hand and smiling at her Mom, "Because if the two of you do anything to screw this up I'm going to kill you both. Seriously…this is the last chance you guys have…no more screwing around."

Lorelai opened her mouth to respond and Luke glared at her, "Don't you dare say dirty!"

Lorelai frowned, "Fine…I won't but come on…that was so dirty!"

"Mom, I love you guys but I don't want to think about that stuff…okay?" She said with a small laugh, "But yes it was dirty."

"At least you admit it!" Lorelai said pointing a finger at her as she laughed.

"Unbelievable…" Luke said shaking his head as he chuckled.

Rory smiled again and then looked back at her Mom, "Okay so you said you took the ring off. Let me see it! Is it the same one as before?"

Lorelai reached into her pocket and shook her head, "No…apparently that one took a little dip in the lake after you dropped it off at the Diner."

Rory grimaced, "I hated doing that…" She said turning towards Luke, "You know that right? It killed me…"

Luke nodded, "It wasn't my favorite day either…but I know that you had to do it. "

Rory nodded and then turned back to her Mom who pulled her new ring out of her pocket. She watched as Lorelai turned to Luke and handed him the ring, he smirked back at her and took her hand before sliding the ring back on her left ring finger.

"Look at you two…" Rory said smiling, "I haven't seen you guys this happy in a really long time…"

Lorelai turned back to her daughter, "We are happy kid. Really happy…"

Rory nodded and took her mothers hand to admire the ring, "Wow…Luke this is beautiful! When did you buy it?"

"He didn't buy it…" Lorelai said with a happy smile as she turned to her fiancé and beamed up at him.

"It was my mothers…" Luke whispered, he stared only at the ring because he was beginning to feel nervous and overwhelmed by all the emotions of the day.

Rory looked from the ring to Luke, "Oh Luke…"

He sighed, "Liz gave it to me after your mom and I broke up…and I was hoping that someday I'd get to give it to her. For a while there I didn't think it would ever happen but somehow I got lucky and she wanted to give me a second chance."

"It is so beautiful…" Rory said looking back at the ring on her mother's finger, "It's perfect. Absolutely perfect."

"Isn't it?" Lorelai said wiggling her finger happily, "And this one is never, ever coming off!"

"Damn right." Luke mumbled in agreement, he winked at Lorelai when she smiled up at him.

"So now that you told me…whose next on the list? You know if you tell to many people before Grandma and Grandpa she will absolutely freak out. And I know for a fact that Sookie has that cake topper stashed away in her kitchen waiting for you to tell her the wedding's back on. So whose next?"

Lorelai smiled, "I think the next person that needs to know is your future stepsister."

Rory smiled at her Mom and then looked back at Luke, "You uh…you mind if I come with you to tell her? She will be my sister after all…we're all going to be a family."

Lorelai looked at her fiancé and her daughter and waited for Luke to respond, she watch the smile on his face grow. "I would love it if you were there Rory. It would mean a lot to her…and to me."

Rory smiled, "Good." She looked around the apartment, "Well we need to wait until she is out of school obviously. And I'd say I would find us something for lunch to celebrate but I haven't gone shopping in days. So…how about I take you guys out to lunch to celebrate? And then we can go to April's house after school to tell her."

Lorelai looked at Luke, "Are you okay with that hon?"

"I am absolutely okay with that." He said with a reassuring smile which Lorelai happily returned.

They talked for awhile longer before gathering their things and heading out to lunch together.

* * *

Later that afternoon, the three of them pulled up out front of Anna's shop. They had called to make sure it was okay that they stop in to talk with her and April. Anna had agreed and promised to make sure April would be there after school.

When they parked, Luke looked over at Lorelai and noticed her smile had disappeared and a look of worry and dread had replaced it. He glanced at Rory in the rearview mirror who smiled showing she understood before she stepped out of the car to give them a minute. Lorelai was so lost in thought she didn't even notice her daughters exit until Luke grabbed her hand.

"I know you are nervous about this but you shouldn't be…I promise things time things are going to be different. No matter what Anna says nothing changes the fact that I love you and we are going to get married." He whispered in a calm, soothing voice.

She turned her head towards him slowly and smiled nervously, "I just love you so much. And I know how important it is for you to have a relationship with April. I don't want to do anything to screw that up for you. I could never live with myself if I ruined that because I would know you would never truly be happy."

"But I can't be happy without you either Lorelai. This last year has proved that. Anna is just going to have to get over her issues with this. I am going to have both you and April in my life no matter what she says." He said reassuringly.

She smiled and nodded her head. "Okay…"

He smiled and leaned forward, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Okay. Come on." He got out of the car and walked to Lorelai's side to open the door for her, she smiled up at him as he took her hand and the three of them walked towards the shop. Anna stood behind the counter and immediately looked up when she heard the door open, April who was standing nearby ran excitedly towards her visitors.

"Hey! I'm so happy to see you guys!" She said hugging both Luke and Lorelai at the same time.

"We're happy to see you too." Lorelai said hugging the young girl back, she glanced nervously at Anna, "I hope we aren't interrupting anything…"

Anna shook her head, but stood up straight and prepared herself for whatever they had to say. "No. She has no planned activities for today. Was there something specific you wanted to discuss or did you just want to say hello?"

Lorelai glanced at Luke to nervous to speak, "Well first of all I should introduce you to Lorelai's daughter Rory…" He looked over at Rory and smiled, "This is Rory Gilmore, Rory this is Anna Nardini, April's Mom."

Rory smiled at the woman who had put a giant wedge between her mother and the man she loved, "It's very nice to meet you."

Anna nodded once, "It's nice to meet you too. April talks about you all the time…it seems she wants to follow in your footsteps and go to Yale now."

Rory smiled at her soon to be stepsister. "Well Yale would be lucky to have her. She is an incredibly smart and gifted young girl. I'd be happy to help her get there anyway I can."

Anna smiled softly. "Thanks."

Luke cleared his throat and put an arm around his daughter before turning back to Anna, "But the real reason we came here is because aside from Rory we wanted you guys to be the first to know that Lorelai and I have decided to get married."

April's face lit up, "Really! Are you serious? This is awesome!"

Anna pressed her lips together, "This wouldn't be the first time you two decided this. How do I know this time it will stick?"

Luke felt Lorelai tense beside him, and he moved his hand from holding hers to wrapping around her shoulders. "Because we know that we can't live without each other. I know you have some issues with my relationship with Lorelai and you seem to think she shouldn't be around April. I understand that you are worried that Lorelai will take your place but that is never going to happen. She would never try and do that, of all the people I know she understands the importance of the mother daughter relationship more than anyone."

Lorelai swallowed hard, "Anna I can understand how uncomfortable all of this. But I just want to be with Luke…and I want to be a part of April's life. She is so important to Luke and that makes her important to me. I want you to know I would do anything for her but I would never ever try and turn her against you. I'd like you and I to be friends even…if that is something you think you could be okay with."

Anna studied Lorelai for a moment before speaking again, "I'm sorry for the problems you have had recently…"

Lorelai nodded once, "Thank you. Luke, Rory and April have been amazing at helping me get through it."

Anna nodded again, "That's good to hear. April said that when you and Luke weren't together anymore you were married to someone else. Rory's father actually…"

Lorelai swallowed hard again, "Yes…although we weren't technically legally married it turns out."

Anna raised an eyebrow questioningly, "Well it's more of a complicated mess then I thought."

Lorelai sighed but she felt Luke squeeze her shoulder to comfort her, "Look Anna I know you probably think I am not a good role model for your daughter. I admit that I have made plenty of mistakes…especially in the last year or so but…" She took a nervous breath, "I just…I'm asking you for a chance. From one single mother to another…I get how hard it is to trust people with your kid. It's like…" She turned to Rory and smiled sadly at her, "It's like you are afraid that she will find something better somewhere else. Or that those other people will break her somehow…I went through all of that with Rory." She turned over to Luke, "And to be honest if I hadn't of had Luke in my life for as long as I did I'm not sure I would have been able to survive."

Luke smiled warmly at her and squeezed her shoulder again, letting her know he was right beside her. She smiled and turned back to Anna and licked her lips before continuing to talk.

"No one can ever take your place Anna. And like I said…I don't want too. I just want to be a part of April's life…in anyway that she wants and in anyway that you will allow. But more than that I want Luke to be happy…and being with his daughter makes him happy. I know you are moving to New Mexico…and that's a whole other issue that needs to be discussed but…" She shrugged her shoulders sadly, "Don't you owe it to your daughter to let her get to know her Dad?"

Anna pursed her lips and then looked down again, "Yes. I do."

Lorelai nodded, "And I am a part of her Dad's life…and you tried to push me out of it for awhile and it worked but…" She glanced back at Luke. "I hope I speak for the both of us when I say that we would rather be in each others lives then try and live apart again."

Luke smiled at her, "You do speak for the both of us." He turned towards Anna, "Anna I don't want to fight with you…I just want to be able to spend time with my daughter. And I want to be able to marry the woman I love…but I can't do both of those things if you keep blocking me at every chance I get. But to be fair…you kept me out of April's life for 12 years…isn't it time you did something for me?"

Anna sighed, "Well its obvious you guys really do love each other…"

"We do. We really do." Luke said pulling Lorelai closer.

Anna sighed and took a moment before she stepped around the counter and walked over to her daughter. She looked at April who looked both nervous and hopeful. She knew how hard it had been for her daughter to not have her father in her life for so long. She constantly asked about who he was and why she wasn't allowed to see him.

She had to admit that since Luke had entered April's life…she had really blossomed as a young girl. She seemed happier and more confident then she ever had before meeting her father. In the last few months she noticed how worried April had been about her father. And deep down Anna knew that she had played a part in the destruction of Luke's relationship.

For awhile she had wondered if it was because she had unresolved feelings for Luke. But…after sometime she realized she didn't, she had just been worried that she would be replaced in her daughters life. That was something she could never handle…but this women before her didn't want to replace her. She knew that now, she understood how hard it was to be a single mother and Anna knew they had a lot more in common then she would like to admit.

And more than that, Anna wanted her daughter to continue to get to know her father. She knew taking her away now would only put a rift between she and her daughter and that was something she couldn't handle.

"Come on Mom…I really like Lorelai and I want to get to know her and Rory more. Besides…no one could ever take your place. You have to know that by now. Its just been you and me for 12 years…I'm not just going to kick you to the curb." Anna said with an eye roll, "Do you really think I could be that mean?"

Anna smiled at her daughter and brushed away some of her thick curls, "No. I don't."

"You promised once I found Dad that you wouldn't keep me from him…and I just want to get to know him more. I don't think I'm asking for a lot." April said with a shrug, "Please don't take him away from me again…"

Anna sighed and turned back to Luke, Lorelai and Rory, "I'm going to call my lawyer first thing I the morning. I have to go to New Mexico no matter what to take care of my Mom…but I don't want April to never see you. We will set up visitation, she can come here on her vacations and any other time when she can get away from school."

April smiled up at her Dad who seemed to be incredibly relieved, "Really?"

Anna nodded, "It's only fair. I realize now that you should have been involved since day one."

"Thank you…" Luke whispered smiling over at his daughter, then he looked over at Lorelai, "And what about Lorelai and Rory? Can April be around them?"

Anna nodded slowly, "Yes…but I would like to be informed about what April is doing with you guys…"

Lorelai nodded, "That's fair."

"And if you two do run into more problems I don't want April to be involved in it. I don't want her to get stuck in the middle." Anna said sternly.

Luke shook his head, "Of course not."

Anna took a deep breath, "Okay then. I promise to not intervene anymore as long as you follow those terms."

They were all quiet for a moment before April spoke up, "So…I can spend time with them together? Not just Dad?"

Anna nodded, "Yes. If that's what you want."

"That's what I want!" April said as her smile grew on her face, "That is definitely what I want!"

Anna smiled, "Okay then…why don't you guys…uh go get an ice cream or something to celebrate. But you have a history test in the morning so you can't be out for to long."

"Thank you Mom!" April said throwing herself at her Mom and hugging her tightly, "You rock!"

Anna blushed, "Okay, okay. Get out of here before I change my mind."

"Thank you Anna…" Luke said smiling at her with so much warmth and sincerity, she had to turn away.

"No problem." Anna said as she cleared her throat, "Uh, see you in about an hour or so. Have fun."

She turned and walked back towards the counter pretending to busy herself with her work. Lorelai knew just how difficult this had to be for, she remembered how hard it was to send Rory off with Christopher and Sherry. Luke, Rory and April began to walk towards the door but she walked towards the counter making Luke stop in his tracks.

Anna's eyes were bright with unshed tears, "Was there something else you needed?"

Lorelai stared at her for a moment, "I want you to know that I will keep her safe."

Anna nodded slowly and looked down trying not to cry, "She's my whole life…"

Lorelai smiled, "I know. And I understand. I promise I won't let anything happen to her. Not on my watch."

Anna lifted her chin slowly and nodded her head once, "Thank you."

Lorelai shook her head, "No…thank you."

Anna smiled and then turned away and Lorelai walked back to Luke who couldn't seem to take his eyes off of her. She took his hand in hers and they walked with their girls to the car eager to start the next phase of their life together. Now that they were all together, they just had to make it through the trial and then nothing else could stand in their way.

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it, let me know by sending in a review! Up next Lorelai and Luke have a lot of decisions to make about their future and how they want to handle telling the rest of the town not to mention the elder Gilmores. I will try and update as soon as possible! **


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey guys, once again thanks for the great reviews! I'm glad you all seem to be enjoying this story. I think I said this before but I'm just going to say it again as a reminder. For the basis of this story it is happening in the middle of summer. I want them to have a summer wedding so I just changed the time period a bit from when this was probably all going on in the show. Just wanted to let you all know that so you weren't asking me questions about it later. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter and I will try and update soon! Hopefully I will get a chapter up before the holiday weekend but I'm not positive if I will have time. I will try though! And the more reviews I get the more motivation I will have to write so keep that in mind ;) Thanks again and enjoy! **

* * *

By Friday, Lorelai and Luke were still basking in the glow of their engagement. They had celebrated with April over ice cream and had plans with her for Saturday when she would be spending the night. Lorelai had gone back to work for a few during the week but only for a few hours. Luke, Sookie and Michel wanted to make sure that Lorelai took it slow for awhile to adjust to being back at work but also make sure she was coping with everything else going on.

On this particular afternoon, she had returned to her house after work and was currently sitting on the porch by herself. She curled up on the bench and thought about everything that had gone on in the last few weeks. It had all happened so fast but she knew that Luke was the one she was supposed to be with. She had to put Christopher behind her, and even though she had said goodbye to him there was still one more step she had to take.

Sighing, she took out her cell phone and dialed the number to the Diner. "Luke's."

"Hey it's me." Lorelai whispered as she looked around the yard, "Is the Diner really busy right now?"

"Hey. No, the lunch rush pretty much died down. The only customer at the moment is Kirk and he's driving me insane. Why is everything okay?" He asked feeling concerned.

"Everything's fine…I just wanted to talk to you about something. And I'm afraid if I don't do it now I'll lose my nerve." She said with a sad chuckle.

Luke frowned on the other end of the phone, "Uh…okay. Well I can be there in a few minutes."

"Okay great. Thanks." She said trying to not sound upset on the phone; she didn't want to worry him. "I love you."

"I love you too." Luke said softly into the phone before he hung up the phone.

Lorelai placed her cell phone down beside her on the bench and sighed. She put her head back and rested it against the window behind her. She started to think about the day that she brought Rory to this house for the very first time. For years she had promised her little girl that they would one day have their very own house. And that day, she finally got to follow through with one of her promises.

That first night they had slept on a mattress in the living room, cuddled together talking about everything they wanted to do in their big new house. And as Rory had fallen asleep beside her she knew for the first time since Rory had been born that they were going to be okay.

In the midst of her deep thoughts, she heard Luke's truck pulled up in front of the house. She smiled as he got out of the car, a Luke's bag in his hands, which meant he brought her lunch. Good old Luke, always thinking about her and making sure she was properly fed.

He smiled as he walked up the steps towards her, "Thought you might be hungry. You worked longer today then you have lately."

She smiled at him, "My hero…"

He chuckled and sat down beside her, he placed the bag beside them and put a hand on her knee. "So…what did you want to talk about?"

She licked her lips nervously and peaked into the bag, "I just…I've been thinking a lot about how we really need to have a fresh start this time around."

Luke nodded as he watched her reach into the bag and pull out a fry, nibbling at it distractedly. "I agree..."

Lorelai nodded and then looked back at the house, "Which is why I think we should put my house on the market and find a new place for us to live. Maybe even the Twickham house if that is still what you want…"

Luke cocked his head to the side and shifted on the bench pulling his leg up under him. "Wait, what? You love this house…why do you want to sell it?"

"Because in order for us to have a fresh start we need to really put the past behind us. All the bad stuff…" She said shaking her head, "I mean we fixed this house up for us and then…"

"You lived in it with Christopher…" He said with a sad huff of breath.

She looked up at him with tears in her eyes, "Exactly. We've kind of been avoiding staying here a lot lately…and we've only spent the night together at the apartment. And we can't stay there forever…not if we want to have room for April and Rory and you know…" She cleared her throat nervously and blushed, "Whoever else might come along…"

"So you want to sell this house and find somewhere else for us to live…" He whispered.

Lorelai nodded, "I think it would be the best thing for us to do."

Luke watched her for a moment, "I know how much this house means to you…"

She sniffled and looked back through the windows, she could see Paul Anka curled up on the bottom step. "It does mean a lot to me. It was the first real home I ever had…the first home Rory ever had. There are a lot of memories here…"

"I don't want to take them away from you…" He whispered reaching for her hand, "That's why I didn't push you to move out last time."

She turned back to him and smiled, "Luke, I love you so much for giving up the Twickham house for me last time. It meant so much to me…and it will be hard to give up this house but I want to do this. For us…"

He sighed and looked through the window at smiled when he saw Paul Anka fast asleep, "I won't pretend I hated being in there knowing he called it home…the place I had fixed up for years and renovated thinking I would spend my life there with you."

"Exactly." Lorelai said sadly, she pushed aside the bag of food and reached for both of his hands. "Luke I could never ask you to live like that…and to be honest with what happened here recently…I don't want to live with those memories. I want to start new memories…with you in our own home."

Luke let go of one of her hands and reached up to cup her face in his hand, "You're sure? Absolutely sure?"

"I am. I'm absolutely sure that this is what we need to do. To finally put it all behind us…its time." She said with a smile.

Luke nodded slowly, "Well alright then, if this is what you want then we can meet with a realtor as soon as possible."

She smiled and leaned over to wrap her arms around his neck, "I love you."

He smiled and held her back, "I love you too."

She pulled back, pecked him on the cheek and then turned her back to him to rest against him, "Do you have to rush back to the Diner or can you stay for a few minutes?" She asked as she pulled the bag of food to her side.

Luke smiled and watched her begin to nibble on her fries again, "I can stay awhile if you want. It was pretty dead when I left."

Lorelai nodded and snuggled further into him as she enjoyed her lunch. "Good." She swallowed her food and then continued, "So you sure you still want to come to dinner tonight? I know that my parents have been nice to you lately but Friday Night dinner is a completely different ballgame. I mean we will be on their territory and not ours which means all bets are off…"

Luke chuckled as he began to play with her hair, "I think I'll take my chances."

Lorelai sighed as she continued to graze, "Alright…if that's what you want but I can't try and save you if Emily goes for the jugular."

He rolled his eyes, "I'm a big boy. I think I can handle it. Besides we agreed we needed to tell them about the engagement. Now that Sookie knows its only a matter of time before she bursts and tells the whole damn town with balloons and confetti and little cookies with our faces on it."

Lorelai giggled, "I would SO eat a Luke Cookie! Yum!"

"You would eat any kind of cookie." He said glaring down at her.

Lorelai pointed a half eaten fry at him, "Uh…not true. You tried to get me to eat those carrot and raisin cookies that one time and I didn't eat it."

"I thought it might be the one way I could get a damn vegetable in you!" He said throwing up a hand in mock frustration.

"Well now you know that will never, ever happen. So why don't you just give up trying." She said with a shrug.

"Fine. But we really do need to tell your parents tonight." He said quietly.

Lorelai nodded, "I know. I was just messing with you. Besides I think they will actually be happy about it this time around. They like you Luke, they really do. It may have taken some horrible circumstances for them to finally see what I see but either way they really do like you. They know I love you…"

"And they know I love you too…" He whispered staring down at her as he stroked her hair, "At least I hope they do."

She smiled up at him, "They do. I mean most guys wouldn't have taken care of me the way you did after everything I put you through…"

Luke watched her face fall as she threw a fry back into the bag, "Lorelai…"

"I'm still not quite sure why or how you ever forgave me for hurting you the way I did…but I really am grateful for it." She whispered sadly.

"Hey…we both made mistakes you know that. Besides…we agreed to put the past behind us didn't we? We don't need to talk about all that anymore…at least not anymore than we need to with the case." He said trying to reassure her.

Sighing, she pulled herself up and turned to face him. "I know…and I'm trying sometimes its just hard to realize were actually here…together."

He nodded showing his understanding, "I know…its hard for me sometimes too. But we are here and this time around we are going to get married. I mean Rory did promise to drag us to the alter if we try and back out…so its gonna happen."

She laughed and reached over to close the bag of food again before putting it on the ground and lay against him again. "She's not going to have to drag me there…nothing can stop me this time around."

He smiled as she wrapped her arm around his middle, "Ditto."

She held him close and looked out at her yard, "Do you think we can get a new house with a porch? I love sitting out here…especially with you. When Rory was little I used to sit out here and watch her play…" She looked up at him and smiled, "And I'd like to be bale to do that with our own kids…together."

Luke smiled down at her and brushed some hair out of her face, "That sounds perfect. We can definitely get a house with a porch."

"Good." She turned her head and let the breeze blow over her face as she held him close to her, "We're going to be very happy together…"

"Yes. We are." He said never taking his eyes off of her.

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai and Luke pulled up in front of the Gilmore residence. Rory was sitting in her car and waved when she saw them pull up. She got out and walked over and pulled her Mom in for a hug.

"You ready to tell them the big news?" Rory said with a supportive smile.

"As ready as we'll ever be." Lorelai said with a nervous smile as she glanced over at Luke who walked over to be with them.

"Mom they are going to be happy for you. I promise." Rory said rubbing her arm gently before she turned over to Luke, "Besides Luke seems to have charmed them. Every time I talk to Grandma now the first thing she does is ask about Luke."

Luke took a deep breath, "Lets hope the spell I cast lasts at least until after we get married then."

Lorelai smiled and took his hand, "I think it will. And even if it doesn't I don't care. We're getting married whether they like it or not."

"Glad to hear it." Luke said as he wrapped an arm around her, "Come on. Lets go."

The three of them walked to the front door and before Luke could even ring the doorbell it swung open with Emily on the other side. "You're here!"

"Uh…hi Mom." Lorelai said with a small laugh, "You said be here at seven so here we are." She said throwing her hands up.

"Good. Now come in here." Emily said reaching for her hand to pull her into the foyer. "Do you want a drink? Your father is in the dining room waiting for us."

"Sure." Lorelai said as they followed her, "Are we eating dinner right away or can we sit and talk for a few minutes?"

"It should be read in 15 minutes or so. We have time to talk." She looked over at her husband. "They are here Richard."

"Wonderful! Welcome. Luke, what can I get you to drink?" He asked as he shook his hand.

"Scotch would be good if that's what you are having." Luke said as he shook his future father in laws hand.

"Actually…" Rory said with a smile as she looked at her Grandparents, "You guys don't happen to have any champagne do you?"

Emily's eyes widened, "We have some in the kitchen. Why? Are we celebrating something?"

Lorelai looked at her daughter nervously, "Rory…"

Rory smiled to reassure her, "Yes. We are celebrating something. Aren't we Mom?"

Lorelai looked at Luke who just shrugged and reached for her hand so she nodded, "Yes. We are celebrating…"

"Well alright then. Richard come with me to get the glasses and champagne." Emily said quietly.

When they left the room, "Couldn't wait for us to sit huh?" Lorelai said nervously.

Rory chuckled, "Sometimes with Grandma and Grandpa its better just to rip the band-aid off ya know? No stalling just lay it all on the line."

"I thought you said they were going to be happy for us?" Lorelai said with a raised eyebrow.

Rory nodded, "I did. And they will be but is better just to do it now. Trust me. Grandma and Grandpa have been so worried about you lately, they want you to be happy. They know that Luke makes you happy and I think if you tell them your good news it will make them so happy. It will help them not worry so much about you…"

Luke rubbed Lorelai's back, "I think Rory's right about this one…"

Lorelai took a deep shaky breath and smiled at him, "Okay. You're right. Lets just do this. I mean I probably should have used this approach when I found out you were pregnant. Instead I waited until I didn't fit into the 300 dollar dress my Mom bought me for this big charity event. Boy did that not go well…"

Rory laughed, "See? Rip the band aid off Mom. No more waiting…for anything."

Lorelai smiled as Richard and Emily walked back into the room, "Alright, so what exactly are we celebrating?"

Richard began to pour the glasses of champagne and handed them out, "Yes. I am very interested to hear what this good news is. God knows you deserve some good news right now."

Lorelai opened her mouth to speak and suddenly couldn't find the words, lucky for her Luke stepped in. "I guess maybe we should have done this differently…I should have come to you both to ask if it was okay first but I just couldn't help myself."

"Ask if what was okay?" Emily asked with a hopeful smile.

"Ask if I could have your blessing to ask your daughter to marry me…" Luke whispered softly.

Emily inhaled sharply and looked over at her husband who was beaming at both Luke and Lorelai, "So I take it you already asked her?" Richard asked.

Luke nodded slowly, "Yes. I did."

Richard's smile widened, "And Lorelai what was your answer?"

Lorelai smiled and linked her arm with Luke's, "I said yes…"

"Oh Lorelai this is wonderful!" Richard said as he clapped his hands once, "We were hoping this would happen soon!"

Lorelai smiled at them, "So you're okay with this? You're happy about it?"

Emily smiled at her daughter and stepped up to her, pulling her in for a tight embrace. "We are so happy for you."

Lorelai breathed a sigh of relief and held her Mother tighter. "Good. Because I am really happy…"

Emily pulled back and glanced over at Luke, "Come here you!"

Luke nervously hugged her, he wasn't a big hugger, "Oh…uh…I'm glad we have your blessing."

Emily smiled as she pulled away, "You love our daughter. And our granddaughter. We want them to be happy and I know you make them happy…I may have not always encouraged your relationship but I know that you are right for each other."

Luke smiled nervously, "I want to continue to make them happy…I promise I will protect them. I want you to know that there's nothing that I wouldn't do for them…"

Emily swallowed the lump in her throat, "I know that…"

Luke looked over at Richard, "I hope you aren't to mad that I didn't come to you first…"

Richard shook his head and held his hand out to Luke again, "Not at all. I'm very happy for the both of you. And this time around we will make sure that the wedding actually happens."

Lorelai smiled, "You don't have to worry about that. We are not letting anything get in our way this time around."

Luke nodded, "We agreed to wait until after the trial is over so we can start our marriage on a good note with a fresh start. But we want to get married as soon as we can."

Lorelai put a hand up, "And I know your head is already turning and you have a million ideas for the wedding but we want a small wedding…"

Emily nodded, "Anything you want. As long as we get to be there…"

Lorelai nodded, "Of course. Besides I'll need Dad to walk me down the aisle…" She turned towards her Dad, "That is if you want too…"

Richard's eyes welled up with tears, "It would be an honor Lorelai…"

She smiled and walked over to her Dad to hug him, "Thank you."

Emily smiled and lifted her glass, "Well its time for a toast."

Rory smiled, "Can I do it?"

Emily smiled at her granddaughter, "That would be wonderful Rory."

Rory smiled and reached for her Mom's hands, "For the longest time it was always just Mom and I…I used to dream about what it would be like to have a real family. And then we met Luke…" Lorelai looked back at Luke who couldn't seem to take his eyes off his soon to be stepdaughter, "And I knew from that point on that he was what we needed to finally have that real family…" She laughed as she looked at her mother and Luke, "It may have taken them awhile for them to finally find their way to each other but it doesn't matter anymore…because they are where they belong. And we…are finally going to be a family. The family I always wanted…" She lifted her glass, "To Mom and Luke, may you have many years of happiness and love. No one deserves it more than you two…"

"To Luke and Lorelai…" Richard and Emily said together as they all clinked their glasses together and took a sip.

Rory looked at her Mom who had tears falling down her cheeks, "You okay Mom?"

Lorelai smiled and pulled her in for another hug, "I'm just really happy kid."

Rory hugged her back and looked over at her shoulder at Luke who winked, "Good. I'm glad."

"Can I see the ring?" Emily asked anxiously.

"Emily…" Richard said laughing, "Don't pry…"

Lorelai smiled as she pulled away from her daughter, "It's okay Dad." She held out her hand for her to see, "It was Luke's Mothers…"

Emily gasped and held her daughters hand in hers, studying the ring on her finger. "Oh my goodness. It is beautiful!"

"Isn't it?" Lorelai said as she looked over at Luke, beaming up at him. "I love it. I keep getting distracted when I look down at it. It's perfect."

"Well your father certainly had good taste." Richard said admiring it, "Look how it's held up over all these years."

Luke smiled, "He saved up for a long time to get that ring…he wanted it to be special. I told Lorelai I could get another ring for her if she wanted but…" He shrugged, "It does mean a lot to me to see her wearing my Mothers ring."

"I don't want any other ring. I want this ring." She said smiling at him, "And I'm never taking it off."

"Dinner is served Mr. and Mrs. Gilmore." The maid said from behind them.

Emily smiled at her, "Thank you Gilda. Come on…we can talk more over dinner."

They group walked into the dining room and took their seats as they began to eat. "I heard from your lawyer today." Richard began to say.

Emily shook her head, "Oh Richard lets not discuss the trial now. Not when we have such happy news to celebrate."

Richard nodded, "I understand. But I was just going to say that he said we could move the trial up by two weeks. And the sooner the trial happens the sooner they can get married. So isn't that good?"

Lorelai stared at him, "Why is it being moved up?"

"Well it seems Chris has changed his plea to guilty." Richard said as he took a bite of his steak, "I think maybe your talk with him made him realize he had no choice in the matter and you weren't going to change your mind."

"Wow…" Lorelai said, "So…what does that mean?"

"Well it means the trial will be much easier. We will just present the evidence to the court and they will decide on an appropriate sentence for him. He's going to get jail time its just a question of how much at this point." Richard said as he reached for his drink.

"So that means it won't be a long drawn out trial." Rory said turning to her Mom, "That's good isn't it? You can just get it over with and get married. No waiting and no stress from the trial or Dad."

Lorelai smiled, "That is good." She paused, "So if they are moving the trial up by two weeks that means it's only three weeks away."

Richard nodded, "Yes, I believe they said it would be August 17th."

Rory smiled at her Mom, "You better start planning the wedding."

Lorelai smiled and turned towards Luke, "You did say you wanted a short engagement."

Luke nodded, "We could get married tomorrow if you wanted, you know that."

"I know you said you want small but have you thought about the place or date at all?" Emily asked curiously, Lorelai could tell she was trying very hard not to jump into planning mode.

"Well we talked a little about possibly having it at the Dragonfly…" Luke said glancing over at Lorelai.

"Oh that would be wonderful!" Emily said excitedly, "It would be so beautiful there."

"It's been an important place for us." Lorelai said reaching for Luke's hand beside her on the table. "And since I'm the owner I can obviously set it all up. It would be a good place to do if we wanted to make the wedding soon."

"That's true." Rory said as she reached for her glass of champagne, "Hey what if you have a Labor Day wedding. It would give you a little time after the trial to continue to plan and the weather is usually so nice then. Its still summer but it shouldn't be to hot either."

"That sounds like a good idea." Luke said nodding in agreement, "It will be nice too because that's before April leaves for New Mexico."

"That's true." Lorelai said with a smile, "She has to be there plus it would be a nice send off for her."

"Okay so you have a place and a date." Emily said happily. "Now lets talk about the dress!"

"Mom." Lorelai said laughing, "Why do I get the feeling the whole wedding will be planned before I leave here?"

"I'm just excited that's all!" Emily said with a smile, "I want to be involved."

"And you will be." Lorelai said with a nod, "But we definitely can't talk about the dress. I don't want to bore Dad and Luke and last time he saw my dress which was clearly bad luck…"

"I told you I didn't want to see it." He teased eying her playfully.

Lorelai shrugged, "Well I don't listen very well."

"You don't need to tell us that…" Richard said with a chuckle. "I told you not to touch the stove when you were five and you were so stubborn you did it immediately after. You even tried to pretend like it didn't hurt because you didn't want to be wrong about something."

Lorelai turned to Luke, "That must be why I don't like to cook. I was traumatized by getting burned on the stove!"

Everyone laughed and Luke rolled his eyes, "Yes. That must be it…"

"Speaking of cooking, what will you do about food? I'm sure Sookie will want to cater it but I assume she will be in the wedding?" Emily asked.

"Yes I want her to be a bridesmaid. I don't want her to have to worry about the food. I trust the other kitchen staff at the Inn. I'm sure Sookie will try and take over though…and God knows I can't really stop her." Lorelai said with a laugh. "I'll have to try and talk to her about it first."

"So who will be in the wedding?" Emily asked.

"Well Rory will be my maid of honor, Sookie, April and Liz will also be bridesmaids. And Luke will have Jess as his best man and his two friends John and Mike from high school and he has to have T.J. even though he doesn't want him in the wedding." She said glancing over at him.

Luke groaned, "Come on Lorelai…you know he'll ruin everything."

"I will ask him to be on his best behavior." Lorelai said with a stern look, "He's your brother in law Luke. He has to be in the wedding…and it would mean so much to Liz. You know that."

He sighed, "Fine…I'll ask him."

"Good." Lorelai said as she patted his hand, "We'll invite our friends from town and you guys but we don't want many other people there. Small and casual…"

Emily nodded, "Sure. Whatever you want."

"You are being very agreeable." Lorelai said with a nervous smile, "It's making me nervous…"

Emily rolled her eyes, "It's your wedding Lorelai…you can do whatever you want. We will help you in anyway we can of course."

"I hope you will accept our help financially…" Richard said glancing nervously at Luke.

Luke took a deep breath, "That's something we should discuss…"

"I don't want you to think I'm over stepping my boundaries but Lorelai is my only daughter and I want to help with the wedding. Plus your own money would be better used on other investments…" Richard said with a shrug.

"Like a new house…" Lorelai said looking over at Luke apprehensively, she knew he hated talking about money and might feel uncomfortable discussing such things with her parents.

"A new house?" Rory asked curiously, "You're selling the house?"

Lorelai grimaced, "I uh…I probably should have told you about this first hon but yes Luke and I discussed selling the house and buying a new one. We just…we think it would be a good way for us to have a real fresh start."

Rory smiled, "I'm not mad. I mean I'm a little sad because that was our home but…I totally get it. I think it will be great for you to have a new home to make new memories in together."

"You sure?" Luke asked softly looking across the table at her, "You are involved in this decision too. That is your home…the place you grew up in. I don't want to do anything that will upset you."

Rory shook her head, "It won't upset me. It will be sad to say goodbye to it but I'm not a little kid anymore. I can't stay there forever…plus you'll need more room for when April stays there."

"And if anyone else comes along…" Emily said with a hopeful smile.

"Mom!" Lorelai said with a laugh, "Subtle much?"

"What?" Emily said with a sly smirk, "Do you think you would want more kids?"

"We have discussed having more kids…yes." Luke said smiling at Lorelai as he took her hand.

"Well that would be wonderful." Richard said with a smile, "We would love to have more grandchildren."

"What, I'm not enough for you?" Rory said pretending to be hurt. "I thought we were close Grandpa! I picked Yale for you!"

Everyone laughed, "Rory you know you'll always be my number one."

Rory smirked at her Mom and stuck out her tongue, "Did you hear that? I'm number one!"

Lorelai smiled, "Trust me…I've always known that."

"So you want more kids and you are thinking about a new house. Would you stays in Stars Hollow?" Emily asked.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes. We want to still be close to the Diner and the Inn. Besides I think it's the perfect place to raise a family. They would be surrounded by a lot of people who loved them. And it's not far from you both and Rory."

"That's smart." Emily said as she continued to eat, "When exactly would you start trying for a baby?"

"Grandma…" Rory said noticing the blush growing on Luke's cheeks.

"Well not to be mean but you aren't getting any younger…" Emily said with a shrug.

"Thank you for reminding me." Lorelai said with a laugh, "But we haven't really talked about it yet. There is so much going on right now we want to settle in to our new life before we make any of those big decisions."

"That sounds sensible." Richard said, "Plus the stress of the trial wouldn't be good to put on a baby. One thing at a time…"

Emily smiled, "Well this is all so exciting!"

Lorelai smiled, "I'm glad you think so."

"I do." Emily said smiling at her daughter, "I really do Lorelai…"

Lorelai just smiled back at her Mom and then glanced over at Luke who was smiling back at her. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this happy and she couldn't wait to see what the future held for them.

* * *

After dinner, Rory had to practically pull Emily off of Lorelai so they could leave. Emily's mind was already in full planning mood and Lorelai knew they were was no stopping it. But instead of being angry about it, she felt content knowing that her parents were finally happy for her.

Back at the house Rory had changed and then gone to visit with Lane and the twins. That left Lorelai, Luke and Paul Anka to pack up a few things and then head to the apartment so spend the night and decompress from their night.

Paul Anka was curled up beside Lorelai as Luke sat down beside her as he handed her a beer. "So that went well."

Lorelai smiled, took a swig of her beer and scratched Paul Anka behind the ears. "Yes it did. Very well."

"While your Mom was talking you ear off your father and I discussed money for the wedding…" He said rolling the bottle between his hands.

Lorelai grimaced, "Hon we can tell them no if you really feel uncomfortable with it."

Luke shook his head, "At first I felt a little funny about it but I think it actually might be a good idea. Like they said we can use the money we will save for our new home."

Lorelai nodded, "That's true."

Luke took a swig of his beer and then looked over at her, "I was actually thinking about the whole house thing after I left here this afternoon…"

"What about it?" She asked resting her elbow on the back of the couch.

"Well I know you said we could look into getting the Twikham house again but that was sold a few months ago." He said softly.

Lorelai frowned, "Oh Luke…I'm sorry. I know you really loved that house…"

Luke shook his head again, "It's okay. I did like it but it was too big, you were right about that. We don't need that much room…it would be to hard to take care of it."

"It was a little big…but it was a beautiful house." She said leaning over to rub his arm softly. "But I'm sure we can find something else…"

Luke nodded, "Yeah we could…" He cleared his throat, "Or…"

She cocked her head to the side, "Or what? You don't want to stay here do you? Because I really don't think that's a good idea…"

Luke shook his head, "No. I don't want to stay here…" He leaned forward and placed his beer on the coffee table and turned to fully face her. "But I was thinking maybe we could build our own house."

Lorelai's eyes widened as she stared over at him, "Build our own house?"

Luke nodded, "Yeah. I mean…it might take a little longer but we can stay here or at the apartment. But really it shouldn't take to long…I mean they build a house in a week on that show with that Ty guy don't they?"

Lorelai smiled at him, "Have you been watching Extreme Make Over house edition without me?"

Luke rolled his eyes, "Can we just focus on the actually building the house thing?"

Lorelai laughed and reached over Paul Anka o hold his arm, "You want to build our own house?"

Luke shrugged, "Yeah I mean we could make it exactly what we want you know? A porch like you wanted, as many bedrooms as we wanted and a bigger kitchen. We don't have to do it if you don't want too…but I just thought it could be good idea for us."

"I think it would be amazing." Lorelai said with a smile, "I just didn't even think about it that at all. But it would be so cool, exactly the way we want it." She paused and smirked at him, "Can we paint it hot pink?"

Luke laughed, "You know I love you but I don't love you that much…"

She pouted, "Oh fine…" She smiled again, "Should we hire T.J. to be the contractor?"

Luke groaned, "Hell no."

She laughed, "I bet we could talk to Tom about doing it. He did such a great job here and on the Inn."

Luke nodded, "That's a good idea." He reached for his beer again, "So you are okay with this?"

Lorelai smiled, "Of course. We will have to see if there is any land around here for sale."

Luke tipped his bottle in the air, "Well actually I already talked to Taylor about that…"

Her eyes widened in surprise, "Damn you work fast."

He laughed, "Well after we talked this afternoon I just started thinking about everything. And now that we want to get married over Labor Day I think it will be good to get started on this as soon as possible."

"Okay. Well is there any land for sale?" She asked curiously.

Luke smiled, "Actually there is, and it's a really great piece of land. Its over by the lake which is half way between the Inn and the Diner."

"Over by the lake? Really?" She asked as her smile grew, "That would be amazing!"

"I thought you might think so. Taylor took me over there today and it has such a great view and the price is unbelievable. If your parents are helping out with the wedding we can definitely afford it and still have more money to build the house. Plus we will have whatever we get from selling this house." He said with a shrug, "So if you want to do it we can go see it tomorrow and talk to Taylor."

Lorelai's face lit up, "Is this really happening?"

He smiled remembering how he had said that last time they were engaged, "Yes. It is. And this time we are seeing it through…"

She leaned across Paul Anka and kissed him gently, "You are an amazing man Luke Danes. I am incredibly lucky to have you…"

"I'm the lucky one." Luke said caressing her face with his hand. "I get to spend my life with THE Gilmore girls remember?"

Lorelai giggled, "That is true…you are pretty damn lucky."

"The luckiest." Luke said leaning in to kiss her again.

"Oh hey can we have a breakfast nook at the new house!" Lorelai said with a happy smile as she pulled away.

Luke laughed, "Do you even know what that is? And why would we need it? You always insist on having breakfast at the Diner because its one of your 'things'." He said using air quotes.

Lorelai laughed, "I don't really know what it is but its always sounded so fancy. I just want to be able to tell people we have a breakfast nook! It will make us sound sophisticated."

Luke rolled his eyes, "We'll talk about it okay? Lets see what our budget is and then we can go from there."

"Well we both know you are going to insist on putting some type of gym in the house so I should be able to pick something special too." Lorelai said with a pout.

Luke nodded, "A gym would be good. Just a small one anyway. But yes you can have your own special room too."

"Oh like my own special coffee room where it always smells like coffee and there are all different kinds and flavors to chose from? What if we made the wallpaper taste like coffee like in Willie Wonka and the chocolate factory!" She said clapping her hands excitedly.

He rolled his eyes again, "You are not having your very own coffee room and you are definitely not having wallpaper that tastes like coffee. You have enough coffee as it is on a daily basis we don't need to add more."

She pouted more, "Fine. But you're no fun."

He just laughed and shook his head, "You're crazy. But I love you."

"Yeah well…I don't know if I love you right now…" She said crossing her arms over her chest and turning away from him.

Luke smirked and leaned over Paul Anka to nuzzle her neck, "I bet I can get you to change your mind about that…"

Lorelai shivered and tried to resist the urge to pull him close, "Oh yeah? And how are you going to do that?"

"Wait until you see the bedroom I'll design for us." He said nipping at her ear gently causing her to moan, "I'll even make us a custom headboard…I'll carve it myself."

She closed her eyes and smiled, "Like the chuppah?"

"Mhm…" He placed soft kisses along her neck as he spoke, "Just like the chuppah…"

"That would be nice…" She said turning so she could look at him.

"So do you love me again?" He asked reaching up to run his hands through her dark curls.

She smiled, "Maybe…I may need more convincing though…"

Luke smirked and stood up, he held his hand out for her which she gladly accepted and led her towards the bed. He kissed her passionately before picking her up and laying her down below him on the covers.

She smiled up at him as he kissed her nose, "I think that could be arranged…"

"Hey Luke?" She asked as she held his face in her hands.

"Yeah?" He asked as he twirled her hair between his fingers.

"Do you think we could get married under the chuppah?" Lorelai asked thinking about the old wooden structure that was still in her front yard.

Luke turned his attention back to her face and studied it for a moment before responding, "Well…yeah I guess we could. But would you want too? I did make it for you to marry another man…"

Lorelai nodded, "I know. But…to be honest that day you brought it over…that was the day I realized I couldn't marry Max."

"Really?" He asked holding himself up higher so he could study her face. "Why?"

She smiled, "Because I saw you standing there under this beautiful thing that you made me and I thought…Max would never make something like this for me."

Luke cocked his head to the side, "So you didn't marry Max because he wouldn't make you a chuppah?"

She laughed, "No. I didn't marry him because I knew he could never love me that much to make me something so beautiful even if it was for me and another man. He wasn't that selfless…he wasn't that passionate or giving and I just knew he wasn't the one. And I looked at you and realized…" She let out a shaky breath as she felt the tears burn in her eyes, "I realized you were the one…"

Luke stared at her in shock for a moment, "You did? You knew that then?"

Lorelai nodded, "I did. I just…I was too scared to admit it. And I hate myself for not saying something sooner but I can't change the past now."

He shook his head, "No you can't. Just like I can't change the fact that it took me eight years to tell you how I really felt."

"All we can do is focus on our future and how happy we are going to be together. And I think the best way to start that future is getting married at the Dragonfly under our chuppah." She said smiling up at him. "So what do you say?"

He smiled down at her before leaning over to kiss her, "I say I can't wait to start our future together Miss Gilmore."

She giggled against his lips, "Soon to be Mrs. Danes…"

"Can't come soon enough…" He mumbled against her lips as his hands slid under her the hem of her shirt.

She moaned as his lips began to kiss against the hollow of her throat, "Speak of the future…think we can practice that whole baby making thing? Like my Mom said I'm not getting any younger and I just want to make sure we know exactly what we are doing."

Luke laughed against her skin, "I think we know how to do it pretty well but practice does make perfect."

"Yes it does…" Lorelai said as she reached for the hem of his own shirt, "So…show me what you got Mr. Danes…"

"God I love you…" He said as he rolled them over so she straddled his hips.

She smiled down at him and pushed his hair out of his face. "Well that's good to hear…because I love you too."

He didn't take his eyes off of her as he pulled her shirt up over her head. When she leaned down to kiss him again he held her as close as possible and tried to keep his heart from bursting from his chest. Who knew you could ever be this incredibly happy? He didn't know what would happen with the trial, or even with the wedding or the house. But the one thing he did know was that this woman was going to be his wife, and nothing and no one was going to stand in their way this time around… 

* * *

**So I hope you liked it! I always loved Lorelai and Rory's house and I know they did too. But I always felt like if Luke and Lorelai ever got back together they would have to live somewhere else. It would be to uncomfortable for Luke to live there knowing that Christopher has lived there with Lorelai after they had fixed it up together first. This way they get a fresh start for their new life and can finally shut the door on Christopher completely. Anyway, if you liked it let me know! Send in a review and I'll try and update as soon as I can! Thanks! **


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey guys! I had a few free minutes to upload the next chapter. I probably won't have an update again until after the holiday weekend but hopefully by Monday I will be able to get time to write. I hope you like this chapter and keep your eye out for an update. Thanks for all the reviews! They really motivate me to keep writing! :) Keep them coming! **

* * *

A few days later, Luke left work early and headed to the Dragonfly to pick up Lorelai. Together they walked over to the lake to meet Taylor who would be showing them the land so that Lorelai could decide if she liked it as much as Luke.

"So this is it." Taylor said walking around them to look back at the lake, "You have a great view of the lake and the town beyond that. You have your own private dock, which is nice too. What do you think?"

Luke looked hopefully at Lorelai who was walking around with a small smile on her face, "It is absolutely perfect."

"Well you can buy it now if you want, we can head to town hall and fill out all the paperwork." Taylor said looking forward to making another successful business transaction.

Luke walked over to Lorelai who had stopped to gaze out at the lake; he placed a gentle hand on her lower back. "You sure? I don't want you to feel like you need to rush into this decision. We can think on it for awhile if you want…"

Lorelai smiled as she turned in his arms and wrapped her arm around his waist, "No. I don't need to think about it, it is the perfect place for us to build a home. The view is beautiful and like you said its half way between the Diner and the Inn so the commute is easy. And there is so much space to build on and still have an actual yard. I think its perfect. If you are ready I'll sign the papers today."

Luke smiled and kissed her gently, "Well okay then…" He turned back to Taylor, "Lead the way Taylor."

"Great." Taylor said clapping his hands together as he made his way down the path towards the main road, "Not that it is any of my business but since you are planning on building a house together does that mean that you two are officially back together?"

Lorelai smiled and squeezed Luke's hand as they walked behind him, "As a matter of fact we are engaged."

"Again?" Taylor asked turning to stare at her skeptically. "I feel like I'm having déjà vu! I must tell you now that I don't have any more Zima…you bought my last box the last time you decided to get married."

Lorelai frowned and Luke pulled her closer, "We don't need any Zima Taylor and this time around we are actually getting married."

"And you should feel privileged Taylor, aside from Rory and Sookie you are the only other member of this town who currently knows about this." Lorelai said with a smile.

"Well lucky me." Taylor said as they continued to walk towards town hall, "Should I bother buying a wedding gift this time? I already returned the last one…"

Luke sighed and glared at him, "We are getting married this time Taylor but I'm not sure you are going to be invited."

Taylor huffed and turned to look at him, "Well that would be incredibly rude of you."

"You're being rude right now!" Luke said with an exasperated groan.

"I was only trying to understand if the marriage would stick this time. I don't want to get all excited again about something that is never going to happen. Lorelai does seem to have a habit of getting engaged and running away…" Taylor said.

Lorelai gasped, "Hey! Maybe Luke is right, maybe you won't be invited to our wedding Taylor! Just because I have made a few mistakes in the past doesn't mean I can't make a marriage work. I love Luke and I want to marry him no matter what you or any one else thinks. This is going to work and we are going to be together forever you big meanie!" She finished her speech by sticking her tongue out at him.

Luke smiled at her proudly and couldn't help but chuckle at her childish attitude, "Well alright if you say so. I always did think you two would make a good couple if you just sat still long enough to figure it out." Taylor said with a shrug, "Besides who else would put up with this crank?" He said pointing a finger over at Luke.

Lorelai wrapped her arm around Luke's waist again and beamed up at him, "He may be a crank but he's MY crank."

"Well as long as you're happy…" Taylor said shrugging as he watched them stare longingly at one another, he couldn't help but smile. "But to be honest…I really am happy for you both."

Lorelai turned back to Taylor and smiled, "Thank you Taylor…"

Taylor nodded once, "Should I be keeping this a secret for the time being? Or are you planning on telling the rest of the town?"

"Well I did promise Sookie she could tell everyone because she has done such a good job at keeping the secret so far." Lorelai said.

Luke grimaced, "You did?"

Lorelai smiled up at him, "Yes. We talked about it the other day. I told her now that my parents knew she could tell everyone else if she wanted."

"And just how is she planning on doing that?" Luke said with a nervous smile.

Lorelai laughed and nodded her head towards the town square, "Take a look for yourself…"

Luke's head snapped up and mouth fell open when he saw the giant banner hanging in front of the gazebo. "Oh my God…"

"I don't think she got a permit for that!" Taylor said running towards the town square where most of the town's people were gathering.

Lorelai giggled as she glanced at the banner, "She said she's had it stashed away for the last few months because she was sure we would get back together. Isn't that cute?"

Luke couldn't seem to answer her as he continued to stare at the large banner with his and Lorelai's faces plastered on it with the words, "They are finally taking the plunge!" And scribbled underneath were the words at the Dragonfly, September 1st, at 4pm, formal initiation to be sent out at a later date!

"Lorelai…what the hell…" He said turning back to her in disbelief. "You let her put that thing up?"

Lorelai laughed at his embarrassed expression, "She's my best friend! How could I say no? I thought it was sweet that she kept it all this time…she knew we were meant to be together even when we tried to deny it. And besides she's done such a good job at keeping our secret, which we both know is extremely difficult for her! It was the least I could do!"

"But-it-I look-I'm huge!" He yelled looking back at the banner, "My face is literally taking over the freaking town square!"

Lorelai smiled and pulled him close again, "I know! I love it! I think we should totally put this up in our house somewhere or maybe even up on the roof!"

Luke glared down at her, "Don't you even think about it! That thing is getting burned!"

Lorelai pouted, "But don't you want everyone to know that you love me?"

Luke rolled his eyes, "No pouting. Everyone already knows I love you Lorelai, they don't need a freaking banner to tell them that. You've had me wrapped around your finger for years!"

She smiled, "That's true. At least this way we get to tell everyone all at once, its much easier. And its like Rory said with my parents, we are just ripping the band-aid off. Much simpler this way…besides it made Sookie happy."

Luke sighed and looked over at the banner again as he watched the towns people looking back at them and waving and shouting congratulations. "Well I guess now that everyone has seen it there is no use in being upset over it."

"Exactly." Lorelai said rubbing his back gently, "And I promise after today we can take it down and you can burn it if you want."

Luke smiled and looked back down at her, "I guess we don't have to burn it…but we definitely aren't putting it up in our house or on the roof."

Lorelai smiled up at him, "Fair enough. Maybe we can put it in a box in the basement."

"Whatever you want dear…" He said as they began to walk again towards Taylor, "Lets go sign the papers for our new home."

Lorelai smiled and followed her future husband through the town and accepted many congratulatory hugs along the way. She couldn't wait to start her new life with the man she loved…

* * *

Later that night, Lorelai, Luke and Tom sat at the dining room table in Luke's apartment. He had called Tom up in the morning and asked if he could come over to discuss the project. Tom agreed to build the house and now they were putting together a plan of all the things they want.

"So this is just a rough sketch I put together this afternoon." Tom said opening up the paper and laying it flat against the table, "I checked out the property and this should be big enough but we can add more or make it smaller if you want. I know you said you want at least four bedrooms…"

Lorelai looked over the rough plan of her new home, "Four would be good, and if we ever needed more than that we could add on later right?"

"Sure." Tom said as he moved across the paper, "This would be the master suit, Luke said he wanted a view of the lake and this particular spot will give you a nice view of the sunset. Luke said you aren't a morning person so I made sure that the sun will rise on the opposite side of the house."

"I knew I always liked you…" Lorelai said patting him the back.

"Glad to hear it." Tom said without smiling as he moved along, "I thought maybe you might want a smaller room just off your room that would technically be connected. As a nursery…Luke also mentioned you wanted more kids. It would be pretty small so it wouldn't be an actual full bedroom. But once the kid is to big you could turn it into something else or just knock the wall down and add it to your bedroom."

"I like that…" Lorelai said running her hands over the small room, "Oh I could even turn it into a closet once the baby is big enough to have its own room!"

Tom chuckled, "I thought you might say that, but I already have a walk in closet for you over here if you want it." He said pointing to the other side of the master bedroom, "And next to that would be the master bath…"

"Very nice…" Luke said looking it over, "Looks like plenty of room for all your clothes. We could always put some couches in the little add on nursery later and some books…you like to read before bed and I always go to bed early."

Lorelai smiled, "That would be a good idea too."

Tom nodded, "And then across the hall here is another bedroom, either for your future kid or April or Rory. And then beside that room is another bathroom for the kids and across then two more bedrooms down here." He said pointing to the other end, "I figured April and Rory would want their own rooms at least for now."

Lorelai nodded, "April will definitely need her own room when she stays with us. Rory does have her own apartment now but I would like her to have a place to stay when she visits so that's good too."

Tom nodded, "Great. Now once you move to the first floor we have more room for adjustment. I drew a pretty sizeable living room but we can make that smaller if you want. Then down the hall would be the kitchen, and Luke mentioned you wanted a breakfast nook."

"He did huh?" She said beaming at her fiancé, "He is a smart man that future husband of mine…"

"The smartest." Tom said in a flat tone as he looked back at the drawing, "Over here would be where all the appliances go, if you want an island we can do that but most people don't usually do that and a breakfast nook."

"We can decide on that later." Luke said as he pointed to a smaller room beside it, "Would this be the dining room?"

Tom nodded, "Yep. We could even put a little bar in there if you want for when you have guests."

"Or for when we don't have guests." Lorelai said with a shrug, "A bar is always a good thing to have!"

Luke laughed and looked back at Tom, "What about a bathroom on the first floor?"

"That's over here and then another little room you could use as an office or even a guest bedroom if you'd like or maybe even both." Tom said with a shrug.

"That could be your gym if you want." Lorelai said rubbing Luke's shoulders.

"I was thinking we could put that in the basement, and maybe even a play room down there too." Luke said pointing to the basement plans, "As long as that's okay with you."

"There would probably be enough room for three separate rooms down there if you want. We could decide on something else for the spare room down there." Tom said with a shrug.

Lorelai bit her lip, "Do you think I could have my own sewing room?"

"Sure. If you want we can do that." Tom said penciling it on the paper. "Luke also said you want a wrap around porch."

"I do, is that possible?" She asked hopefully, "I love the one on my house and I really would love to have one."

Tom nodded, "It shouldn't be a problem, I've built plenty." He made a few more notes on the blue print, "Hey Luke I know you said you wanted to help with the building if you can, do you still want to do that?"

Luke nodded, "I'd like to if you don't mind. I just want to be a part of it to make sure it all goes the way we want it. Plus I always kind of wanted to build my own house..."

"That is so sexy…" Lorelai said staring down at him, "My big muscle man is gonna build me a house!"

"Try and keep your pants on until after I leave okay?" Tom said with a smirk.

Luke blushed and Lorelai wrapped an arm around him affectionately, "I'll do my best."

"Great thanks." He put his pencil down and looked at them both, "With the budget Luke gave me I could probably be ready to start construction in about a week. We could possibly be done before the wedding but it would be tight…I don't have a lot of other projects going on right now though so I bet we could do it."

Luke looked back at Lorelai, "Well if it isn't done we can stay here for awhile right?"

Lorelai nodded, "Yeah. We talked to the realtor today and she is going to come inspect my house this week and put it on the market. She said she already has a few families that she think might be interested in moving in. So when that goes through we would have more money to work on the house too."

Tom nodded, "Well great. I'll try and make a more final sketch for you guys within the next few days and then bring it to you to finalize. Is that good?"

"It sounds great." Luke said as he put his hand out to shake Toms, "Thanks so much for being so quick about this. I know it was all kind of rushed."

Tom shrugged, "It's no problem. Like I said I don't have many jobs at the moment and I actually like you two more than most of my usual clients. Besides it's a great piece of land you've got so I'm looking forward to this particular project."

"That's what we like to hear." Lorelai said as they all stood up and walked towards the door. "If there is anything you need from us please let us know."

"My only request is that you don't make me work with T.J. this time around. Having him around for an addition was one thing but when we are building a house from top to bottom I can't promise I'd be able to keep him safe." Tom said as they approached the apartment door, "And when I say that I don't mean an accidental injury I mean I can't promise I won't push him from the roof."

Luke laughed, "You don't have to worry about T.J. being involved. I already filled my brother-in-law duties by asking him to be in the actual wedding. He doesn't need to be involved in building our house too. I'd like the house to actually stay up when we get some heavy wind."

Tom nodded, "That's usually what people want…"

Lorelai smiled, "Thanks again Tom. Will talk to you in a few days."

"Great." He reached for the door knob, "Oh hey and congratulations by the way. I know this time it will stick."

Luke smiled and pulled Lorelai closer, "Yes. It will."

"Bye Tom." Lorelai said as she waved at him when he walked out of the apartment, when he was gone she turned back to Luke. "Those plans look amazing! I can't wait to see it when it's actually built."

"They do look great. We have a little tweaking to do but not much. He heard most of what I was asking for when he talked last." Luke said as they walked further into the apartment.

They sat down together on the couch just as Paul Anka jumped up to snuggle with Lorelai, "It's all happening so fast…"

Luke reached over and took her hand, "Is that okay? Because we can slow down if you want. You already have a lot going on…if it's to much to soon we can wait."

Lorelai shook her head and leaned in closer to him, "No it's not to fast. It just feels like a dream though. Some mornings when I wake up I have to pinch myself to remind myself its all real."

Luke smiled and brushed her hair out of her face, "I know what you mean."

"And to be honest all of this has been a good distraction for me. I've been so worried about the trial and having to see Christopher again that I think if I didn't have all of this to think about, I would be a total mess. Knowing I have something amazing happening as soon as the trial is over is really helping me keep it together." She said smiling up at him before she rested her head against his shoulder.

Luke kissed the top of her head and began to rub his knuckles up and down her arm soothingly, "Good. I'm glad…"

"And I meant what I said before…I think it is really sexy that you want to help build the house." She said tilting her head to look at him.

He smirked down at her, "Oh yeah?"

She nodded slowly as she reached up to caress his face, "Definitely. I can't wait to take a break from work and go check up on the house and see you all sweaty and your muscles popping out as you nail up the wall to our bedroom." She giggled, "All I'll be able to think about is how when you are done you'll be nailing me there too!"

Luke groaned and threw his head back, "Aw geez…"

Lorelai laughed as he tried to pull away from her and she quickly pulled herself up to straddle his waist, "And then you'll use your screw driver to screw something and I'll imagine you scre-"

Luke put a hand over her mouth as he tried not to laugh, "Please stop. You're crazy."

She smiled against his hand and bit it playfully, "Crazy in love baby…"

Luke shook his head and moved his hand to hold her face in place, "Nope…you're just plain crazy."

"That makes you crazier for loving me…" She said cocking her head to the side.

"Well then I guess we make a good pair…" He said pulling her closer to him.

"Yes, we sure do." Lorelai said with a smile as she leaned all the way in and kissed him passionately.

There was a lot to do in the next two months but neither of them could wait to see how it all played out.

* * *

A few days later, Lorelai went to visit Rory up at her apartment. She had officially graduated of course but was still living in her apartment for the time being. Luke was spending the night with April having some father and daughter bonding time.

Lorelai sat at her daughter's kitchen table and smiled, "So how are things with Logan? You haven't talked about him much…"

"Well we actually decided to take a break. I've had so much going on and he's so busy we haven't had time for each other. We still talk occasionally though so who knows what will happen in the future." Rory said with a shrug.

"Oh hon why didn't you tell me sooner? Are you okay?" Lorelai asked reaching her hand across the table to squeeze her hand encouragingly.

Rory nodded, "Yeah I'm okay. I care about Logan a lot but right now just isn't the time for us to be together. And I didn't tell you because you have had enough on your mind to worry about."

"But you're my daughter, your happiness is just as important to me as mine." Lorelai said with a sad smile, "I don't want you to think you can't talk to me about this kind of stuff."

"I know I can talk to you Mom but it just didn't come up. Don't worry about it. I'm really okay with it." She shrugged, "But there is something I do need to talk to you about…"

"Okay…" Lorelai said fidgeting in her seat, "What's up?"

"Well you know that I have been looking for jobs right?" Rory said nervously as she glanced at her Mom.

Lorelai nodded, "Of course. Why? Did you find one?"

"I got offered a paid internship for the next year…" Rory whispered.

"Honey that's great!" Lorelai said standing up to hug her, "When did this happen? Where is it? When does it start?"

"Well it starts after Labor Day…" Rory said as she waited for her Mom to sit back down, "And uh…it's in New York City."

Lorelai plopped down in her seat and frowned, "New York?"

Rory nodded slowly, "It's an internship for the New York Times…"

"Oh Wow…" Lorelai said swallowing hard, "Rory that's amazing. I'm so proud of you!"

She smiled softly, "Thanks Mom. I think this could be a really great opportunity for me; I would be working for one of the best newspapers in the country. I know it's kind of far but…it's not that bad right? I would come visit when I can and you can come visit me in the city too."

Lorelai smiled, "Of course I'm gonna miss you kid but this is a great opportunity for you. You can't turn it down! You would be doing what you have always wanted to do!"

"So you aren't mad?" Rory asked nervously.

"Of course I'm not mad!" Lorelai said scooting her chair closer to her, "I'm so proud of you Rory. You have worked so hard for this. I mean we will have to look into getting you an apartment there and-"

"Grandpa already took care of that for me." Rory said smiling.

Lorelai raised an eyebrow at her, "He did?"

Rory nodded, "Yeah. I talked to him about it yesterday when he came to have lunch with me. He said he had a friend who owned an apartment complex in Manhattan and he called to see if there were any available places to rent."

"Well that's amazing! Your Grandpa sure does work fast." She paused, "But I don't know how I feel about you living in the City all by yourself…"

Rory chuckled, "Well you don't have to worry about that because I already have a roommate."

"You do? Geez how out of it have I been lately? You've planned your whole life without me!" Lorelai said wit a pout.

Rory shook her head, "You've been busy and to be honest I just found out about the internship so this all happened within the last few days. I didn't want to tell you until I had everything settled so you wouldn't worry."

"Rory, I'm your Mother, I'm always going to worry!" Lorelai said laughing softly, "No matter how old you are or how old I am my job is to always worry about you."

"I know that. But I want you to focus on your new life with Luke and April and whoever else may come along. You shouldn't be worrying about me…you have so much to look forward too." Rory said reaching for her Moms hand.

Lorelai squeezed it back, "Honey just because I am starting a new life…doesn't mean you aren't still part of this family. You know that right?"

Rory smiled, "I know…but things are changing Mom and that's okay. It makes me a little sad to think it won't be just you and me anymore but I'm also really happy. You know that I love Luke and I want you guys to be together. And I adore April and can't wait to get to know her better."

"And if Luke and I do happen to have another kid? How will you really feel about that?" Lorelai asked nervously, "I want you to be honest with me…"

"I think it will be great. You know I always wanted a brother or sister and technically I do have one with GiGi but I don't get to see her often and I definitely won't see her much now…" Rory said with a shrug, "I think it will be cool to be able to watch my brother or sister grow up. And I know you want another kid."

Lorelai smiled, "It's funny because I was never really sure I wanted more kids. I mean I loved having you but you were so perfect I didn't think I'd get so lucky the second time around."

Rory rolled her eyes, "I'd hardly say I was perfect Mom."

Lorelai shook her head, "You were perfect Rory. You still are…and I want you to know that no matter who else comes along you will always be the best thing that ever happened to me. You changed my life kid…I love you more than you could possibly ever understand. So no matter how far away you go or how many more kids I have you will always have the most special place in my heart."

"Oh Mom…" Rory said as her eyes welled up with tears.

Lorelai smiled, "But if I do have more kids just don't tell them that I love you best, okay? It might cause some friction in the house…"

Rory laughed, "I promise I won't tell a soul."

"Good." Lorelai said patting her hand gently, "But I really mean it, no matter how things change you are always important to me. Anything you need, anytime I'll be there. Luke too, okay?"

Rory nodded, "Okay."

"Good." She leaned back in her chair and smiled, "So…how soon do you have to leave after the wedding?"

Rory grimaced, "Like…the very next day."

"Ugh…that doesn't leave us much time together." Lorelai said with a pout.

"Maybe it will be perfect timing. I mean you and Luke will be jetting off to your honeymoon and April will be moving to New Mexico. That will leave a lot of time for you and Luke to really focus on each other which is how it should be for newlyweds." Rory said with a shrug.

"God I forgot that April will be leaving too…" She sighed, "I'm starting to think our daughters just don't like us."

Rory laughed, "Always so dramatic…"

"You know you will have your very own room in the new house." Lorelai said honestly, "So anytime you want to come home you can, you never have to ask."

Rory smiled, "I appreciate that." She reached over and took a sip of her drink, "Has anyone put a bid on the house yet?"

Lorelai nodded, "Yes actually…a young couple that just had a kid. They seem really interested and are willing to give us what we are asking for it."

"That's good." She paused again and smiled sadly, "It is weird to think of other people living in our house though…"

"I know." Lorelai said with a sigh, "I haven't stayed there much lately but it will really be weird to say goodbye. I started packing a little but I was wondering if you wanted to help. You can take anything you want for your new apartment too."

Rory smiled, "That would be nice. That way I'll have a little bit of home with me in the City."

"Hey I was thinking the night before the wedding…maybe you and I can spend the night at the house together. Just us." She shrugged, "One last night as just the Gilmore Girls…"

Rory smiled, "That would be perfect…"

"The perfect ending to that chapter of our lives…" Lorelai said as her eyes welled up with tears, "I'm still having a hard time accepting you are a college graduate though. I still think you're a little kid…"

"I'm having a hard time believing it myself…" Rory said with a chuckle, "But somehow it's true."

"You'll always love Mommy though, right?" Lorelai said cocking her head to the side with a smile.

"Always." Rory said leaning over to hug her again, "Always, always."

Lorelai smiled and held her daughter tight, the idea of Rory moving away broke her heart but she knew it was time. She couldn't keep her in Stars Hollow forever and she didn't want too. She wanted her daughter to follow all her dreams and In New York she would be able to do that. And she would just have to make sure that she visited it as often as possible…

* * *

After leaving Rory's apartment Lorelai drove back to Stars Hollow and straight to the Diner, she walked into the apartment and plopped down on Luke's bed where he was reading alone. April had gone home but would be coming back again soon to stay for a few weeks after the trial was over and until the wedding.

"My baby is leaving me…" She said with her head in her pillow.

Luke frowned and put his book down beside him before turning to rub her back, "What do you mean she is leaving you?"

Sighing, she rolled over so she could see his face. "She got a paid internship at the New York Times and she will be moving the day after the wedding…"

"Wow…" Luke said propping himself up on his elbow to face her, "That is great for her but that is pretty soon."

Lorelai nodded, "I know. This is such a great opportunity for her and I know this is something she has always wanted. I just hate to see her leave…especially so soon."

Luke nodded, "I understand that…there's been a lot of changes lately. It's a lot to take in all at once. But New York isn't that far away…we can visit her when we want and she will come here too."

Lorelai sighed, "I know. I feel bad for even complaining when April is moving all the way to New Mexico…"

Luke shook his head, "It's okay Lorelai…I know how hard this is for you. It's always been just you and Rory, you'll miss her. I get it."

She pouted, "We talked about it but I just want her to know that no matter how much things change we will always be here for her. I just don't want her to feel like I'm starting this whole new family without her, you know?"

"She knows that…" Luke said running a hand through her hair.

"I hope so…" She whispered as she stared up at him, "I really do…"

"Hey…" Luke scooted closer to her and rolled on top of her, holding himself up so he didn't crush her. "It's going to be okay…I promise."

Lorelai felt her eyes well up with tears, "I'm sorry I'm getting so emotional…I just don't want to lose my baby. For the longest time she was all I had…my only family."

"I know that." He said reaching a hand up to brush fresh tears away, "But I'm a part of your family now too, right?"

Lorelai smiled up at him, "Yes. You are."

"And I'm not going anywhere…and neither is Rory really. Just because she is moving away doesn't mean she isn't still your daughter just like April will still be my daughter too. Our family is changing and growing and it's a little scary but we will get through this together. Okay?" He said leaning down to kissing her softly.

"I love you…" Lorelai said as she held him close, "I love you so much…"

"I love you too…" Luke said staring down at her with a smile, "It's going to be okay."

"You're right…" She said with a smile, "Although I may need you to keep reminding me that over the next few weeks…"

He chuckled, "I can do that. Just let me know when you are feeling a little insecure about it all okay?"

Lorelai nodded, "Okay…"

"Good…" He rolled over again and Lorelai leaned up so he could put his arm under her neck, "So tell me more about the internship…she'll have a lot to do between now and then. Will she have time to even find an apartment? I know she wants to be here during the trial and she of course will be here for the wedding preparations."

"I guess she talked to my Dad about it before she talked to me. He has a friend who owns an apartment complex in Manhattan and there is an open apartment for her to take. It had two bedrooms and you will never guess who her roommate is going to be."

"Please don't tell me its Logan because I may have a small heart attack if you tell me that." Luke said with a grimace.

"No it's not Logan…apparently they are on a break. But her roommate is going to be Paris. Apparently she got an internship too." Lorelai said with a smirk.

"Okay is Paris like a weird stalker? She followed her to Yale and now to New York too?" He said with a chuckle. "And when did they decide to take a break?"

"No Paris isn't a stalker," Lorelai said with a small laugh, "She's an…interesting character that one but I think she's good for Rory. She pushes her and they know each other so well I'll be happy to have them staying together. I don't want her alone in the City…and apparently they decided to take a break very recently. She doesn't seem that upset about it though. I can't tell if she is just saying that because she thinks I have enough going on or she just thinks it's a good idea."

"Well Rory is a smart girl…she knows what she wants in life. If she thinks this is a good thing for her and Logan to have a break or even to break up for good then that has to be her decision." Luke said.

"You're just happy because you never really liked Logan…" Lorelai said with a chuckle.

Luke shrugged, "I thought she could do better, that's all."

"Lets be honest babe, you've never liked any of the guys she has dated. Except for maybe Jess…although now they will be technically related so that could be a little weird." Lorelei's aid wrinkling her nose.

"You know I love my nephew but he wasn't good enough for Rory either…" He said shaking his head, "No guy ever will be…for her or April…in fact they should just become nuns now and save us all the trouble."

Lorelai smiled, "They have to grow up sometime. And besides, don't you want them both to find a love like we have?"

"Sure. But no guy is ever going to be able to love them the way they deserve. Boys are scum." Luke said nonchalantly.

She smiled again, "Some men are scum yes…but not you."

"I'm glad you think so but I think I've had my moments of scuminess." He said with a smirk. "And I think you know that…"

"We all have moments of scuminess…" She said with a chuckle, "Is that even a word?"

"I don't know but it doesn't matter. There really is no guy good enough for Rory or April, not as far as I'm concerned." He said with a frown.

She smiled and stroked his face gently; "I guess we'll have to let them decide that on their own. But it won't be easy…"

"No…" He said shaking his head as he stared down at her, "I know what it feels like to be heart broken…and I don't ever want either of them to feel that pain."

"Me either…" She said tracing the outline of his jaw, "But I do want them to find a man who loves them the way that you love me…a man that will take care of them no matter what. And for them to do that…they may have to get hurt a few times along the way."

"That's the part I don't like…" He said with a pathetic little pout.

"I have to help you work on that pout…" She said pulling at his lower lip, "You can do better than that…"

"You'll have to give me lessons." He said with a chuckle, "But I don't think anyone can be as effective at the pout as you and Rory…"

"Can you imagine if we have a daughter what it will be like to have a toddler giving you the pout…" She said smirking up at him, "You will be so screwed!"

"God I hope we have boys…" He said with a grimace, "I'm not sure my heart will be able to take it if we have a girl..."

"You'll love her though…so much…" She whispered with a knowing smile, "I can't wait to see you with our baby…"

He smiled, "I can't wait to see YOU with our baby. And for the record I would love to have a girl…one that looks just like you with your dark blue eyes and black curls. She'll melt my heart the minute I meet her just like you did…"

"Can we name her Lorelai too?" She said with a playful smile.

"Naming one kid after you wasn't enough?" He said laughing as he shook his head in disbelief.

She shrugged, "It's a pretty great name…" Luke just laughed more, "But if we do have a boy…I was thinking we could name him William after your Dad…"

Luke stopped laughing and turned toward her in surprise, "You would do that?"

She smiled up at him, "Of course. I know how much your Dad meant to you, and I hate that I never got to meet him. I'd love our son to be named after him…"

Luke smiled, "I'd like that too…"

"Maybe we could have one of each…" Lorelai said with a hopeful smile, "I did have a dream once where I had twins, a boy and a girl.

"I remember you telling me about that. But didn't we name them Sid and Nancy?" He asked staring down at her.

She shook her head; "I changed my mind to Leopold and Lobe."

Luke rolled his eyes, "We are so not naming our kids Leopold and Lobe or Sid and Nancy for that matter…"

"Fine, you're no fun." She said pouting, "We can stick to William…" She paused, "And Lorelai…"

Luke laughed. "You're hopeless…"

"And you get to spend the rest of your life with me!" Lorelai said rolling over to lay over him, "You are so freaking lucky my friend."

"I'm starting to question my mental status at this moment…not sure what I was thinking asking such a crazy women to marry me." He said frowning at her.

She gasped and pinched his stomach, "You take that back!"

He smiled, "Of course I know how lucky I am. And I'm going to think that everyday when I wake up beside you and see you with our future kids. You don't have to worry about that."

Lorelai smiled and leaned down to kiss him passionately. She was still sad to see her daughter go, but she knew it was time for her to make her own life. New York City wasn't that far away and they would see each other when they could. But the best part was that she knew even though Rory was leaving, she wasn't alone anymore. She had a man by her side that wanted to make her happy everyday and for that she was pretty damn lucky.

* * *

**So I hope you liked it! I know its different than the job Rory actually got on the show but whatever. I wanted her to be closer. So let me know what you think and send in a review! That will help me to write faster! For those of you that are fellow Americans reading this...HAPPY 4th of July! Have a safe and happy holiday! **


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey guys here is the next chapter. I am going to be kind of busy the next few days but I will do my best to write when I can so you will have an update soon. Thanks :) **

* * *

Two weeks later, the trial was only one week away. The foundation for the house had already been built and Tom and his men were making good progress on the rest of the house. Lorelai and Sookie had figured out how to make the wedding at the Inn even though it meant bumping a few guests to a different date at a lesser charge.

The menu was set after a long and difficult battle between Sookie and Luke about what food would be best. Sookie had agreed to let her team of chefs handle the actual cooking during the wedding but Lorelai knew she would more than likely see her sneaking off during the wedding to check on thing sin the kitchen.

The old house had been sold and Lorelai and Luke had started packing up all of Lorelai's things and deciding what they wanted to keep and get rid of. On the weekends, Rory came by to go through her own things and decide what she would want to take with her to New York as well.

With everything going on, Lorelai hadn't had much time to think about the trial. But as the date got closer, she was beginning to feel more anxious about it. On this particular morning Luke was already down in the Diner serving the breakfast crowd. Lorelai was tossing and turning in bed as another nightmare reliving the night that Christopher had attacked her began to take over her brain.

_She flinched as she felt his right hand grab hold of her waist as he continued to push her against the counter, "Chris please stop…"_

_His lips were against her ear as he continued to yell at her and his hand dug harder into her hip making her gasp in surprise and fear, "Do you wish it was him who was here with you tonight? Do you wish it was him who was touching you when we make love? Is that it? Do you picture him when I'm inside of you?"_

_The tears were falling freely now and she tried to push him off of her but it was no use. "Stop. Please stop!"_

_"Answer me Lorelai!" He said shoving her back against the counter again making her shriek, "Do you wish it was him when I kiss you? Do you wish it was him holding you at night?" He asked as other hand crushed the letter against her other side. "You want him Lorelai? Not me?"_

_She could barely breath now she was so afraid, she wanted to run and get as far away from his as she could but she knew she couldn't fight him off. "Chris-" She chocked out as he continued to shove her back, digging the hard surface into her lower back. "You're hurting me. Please…please stop."_

_"I bet you are thinking your precious Luke would never do this aren't you?" He said pulling back just enough to look her in the eyes. "Is there anytime you aren't thinking of him?"_

_"Stop! I'm not thinking about anyone else! You're my husband!" She yelled hopefully as the tears spilled down her cheeks and onto her shirt._

_Chris glared at her as he pulled all the way away finally letting her go, "Don't you forget that."_

Lorelai woke with a jolt and threw her legs over the side of the bed. She was sweating and shaking as she ran to the bathroom and leaned over the toilet and began to throw up. She was crying as she held the toilet close and emptied the contents of her stomach as she tried to hold herself up.

The bathroom door opened slowly, "Lorelai? I heard some commotion up here…are you okay?"

She sniffled and shook her head, "Luke go back downstairs. Please…"

Luke sighed and walked further into the bathroom, "Hey…it's okay. It's just me. If you're sick you don't have to hide it from me."

"Luke please…just go…" She said as she continued to cry. "Get out of here!"

"Fine…but come out here when you are ready. I want to talk to you. I'm not going anywhere…" He whispered as he reluctantly walked out of the bathroom.

She heard the door close behind him as she lifted herself up off the floor and flushed the toilet. She ran her shaky hands under the water and splashed some on her face. She checked her appearance in the mirror and saw her the bags under her eyes and knew he would be able to tell she had been crying pretty hard.

Sighing, she reached for her toothbrush and brushed her teeth. When she finished, she rested her hands on the side of the sink and took a few deep breaths trying to calm herself down. It had only been a dream…and yet it felt just as real as when it actually happened.

She took one more glance in the mirror before turning and walking out of the bathroom and into the bedroom where Luke was sitting with Paul Anka. "Hey…" He whispered.

She sighed and sat down beside him and pulled Paul Anka up onto her lap. "Hey…"

Luke watched her for a moment as she ran her hands through the dogs long fur, unable to look at him. "Are you okay?"

Licking her lips she fidgeted in her seat and shrugged, "I just had a bad dream…"

"About what?" When she didn't answer he nodded, "The dream about Chris again?"

She nodded slowly, "Yeah…I'm sorry. I just can't seem to stop it…"

He shook his head and moved closer to her, "Lorelai you don't have to apologize to me about a dream. We can't help the dreams we have…especially our nightmares."

She whimpered, "It felt so real Luke…it always does. I hate it."

He sighed and patted the spot beside him signaling Paul Anka to move, then he pulled Lorelai up against him and lay back so he could hold her close. "It's okay…it was just a dream. It's wasn't real…"

She sighed and held him close, "But it was…it actually happened Luke. And I can't seem to shake it…"

He ran his hand up and down her back, thinking back to that night that Rory had come to him to tell him what happened. He would never forget the way that Lorelai looked as she cracked open the door, the far and pain on her face had ripped through him like a knife. And then when he had seen the mark on her face he felt like someone had ripped his heart out. He never wanted to live through that again, he couldn't imagine what it was like for Lorelai to relive it in her dreams.

"I know it happened. And I hate that it happened…I wish I could change it all for you but I can't." He said holding her close, "But Chris is out of your life…and he will be permanently after the trial. You don't have to be afraid of him anymore…"

"I can't help it." She said snuggling into him, "I feel like whenever things are good for me something happens to ruin it all. And I've never been as happy as I am right now and I'm worried it won't last…"

"It will last." He said giving her a gentle, reassuring squeeze. "I'm not going anywhere Lorelai. I promise that this time nothing will tear us apart…"

She sat up slowly and looked down at him, "But you don't know that…you can't know that. No one can Luke…we don't know what will happen in the future."

Luke sighed and reached his hand up to stroke her face, "Things have been so good lately. You're just upset because the trial is coming up and you are nervous. Don't let Christopher have the power to upset you like this Lorelai."

"I'm not trying too. But it's the truth isn't it? No one can see what is going to happen in the future. No one can be sure that we will be together forever." She said starting to get upset again as she felt her eyes well up with tears.

Sitting up Luke was quiet for a moment, "You're right…no one can assure that but I can assure you that I love you. And after everything that we have been through nothing is going to change that. I know that now…"

She sniffled sadly and looked down at her hands in her lap, "I don't mean to upset you…things have been good and I don't want to ruin that. I'm just…I'm…"

"You're scared…" Luke whispered softly.

She swallowed the growing lump in her throat and nodded slowly, "Yeah. I am…I'm really scared Luke. I'm scared of everything…and I don't want to be."

"Tell me what you're scared of…" He whispered reaching a hand out to her to encourage her to talk more to him.

"I'm scared of find a way to screw this up. I'm scared about Rory moving to New York. I'm scared of letting you down and losing you again." She let out a shaky breath, "And I'm scared of seeing Christopher at the trial…"

He squeezed her hand, "First of all…you aren't going to screw this up, let me down or lose me, okay? Lets be clear about that." He scooted even closer to her. "And I know you are scared about Rory moving away but she's a big girl and you taught her well. She knows how to take care of herself because she learned from watching you take care of the two of you for so many years…"

"I just want her to be safe and happy…" Lorelai whispered softly.

Luke nodded, "And that's what makes you a good mother. And she will be safe, she will have Paris with her and your Dad found her a great apartment. And as far as seeing Christopher again…" He took a deep breath, thinking about having to face him himself, "I'm going to be with you the whole time, and so are your parents, Rory and Sookie. Christopher won't be able to get anywhere near you…he's going away for what he did. And after that you know your Dad said when he does get out of jail we can put a restraining order on him. No matter what I will never let him or any other person lay a hand on you…that's one thing I can promise you."

She tried to smile as the tears continued to fall, "Promise?"

He nodded slowly and leaned forward to kiss her gently, "I promise."

She let out a sigh of relief and leaned against him, "Can you stay with me for a few more minutes?"

He smiled and lay back down on the bed and pulled her up against him, "Of course."

Lorelai held him close as Paul Anka moved closer to snuggle with them both. He rested his head against her leg and she smiled holding her two favorite guys close. She was still scared about the trial but she knew that with Luke by her side she would be able to handle it all.

* * *

An hour later, Lorelai had showered and calmed down enough to have a quick breakfast in the Diner. She kissed Luke goodbye and thanked him for calming her down before she left for work. As she was crossing the street she saw Miss Patty standing outsid her study and she stopped to say hello.

"Good morning Miss Patty." She said with a smile as she held her coffee in her hand.

"Lorelai! You look beautiful today, but then again you always do." She said smiling at her before she whispered, "And look at that…I can't even see the bruises anymore."

Lorelai smiled nervously, "Yeah, they seem to have finally disappeared."

"And there will never be another bruise on that beautiful face of yours!" She said leaning forward to touch Lorelai's cheek softly. "The trial is coming up isn't it?"

"It's a week from today…" Lorelai said nervously shuffling her feet on the ground.

Miss Patty nodded her head and tried to smile reassuringly, "I know you are probably nervous but you shouldn't be. Knowing your father, he has hired the best lawyers in all of New England!"

Lorelai looked back up and smiled, "He did. And Christopher is actually pleading guilty so it shouldn't be a long trial…I guess I'm just nervous to actually see him."

Patty smiled sadly, "I can understand that…but Luke and Rory will be with you the whole time, won't they?"

Lorelai nodded, "Yes, and my parents and Sookie. I know I have seen Chris since this all happened I just don't know how I will react to seeing him in court. It seems so surreal that we have to deal with this situation right now. I'm honestly still having a hard time even accepting that it happened in the first place. For as long as I have known Chris I never, ever thought he could be capable of something like this."

"We never want to think the people we care about can do such awful things honey." Patty said softly, "When my husband hit me…I was floored. I was in denial for the longest time and unlike you I didn't press charges. I wish to God I did because he continued to hurt me for years until he found another woman. We got divorced and he married her…I heard through the grape vine he did a real number on her too. I always felt guilty about that…"

Lorelai frowned, "It wasn't your fault…"

Patty shrugged, "But maybe if I had told the police he would have been stopped. Then maybe she wouldn't have been hurt…"

"It's no good blaming yourself for it now Patty, it's in the past. It can't be changed. And that woman could have pressed charges too…" Lorelai tried to reason with her.

Patty nodded, "You're right, so just remember that you shouldn't be ashamed either about any of this. I know you feel like because of your history with Luke it was your fault this happened but it isn't. Christopher made his own decisions…when you see him in that court room don't get nervous and think its your fault. Okay?"

Lorelai nodded slowly, "I'll try to remember that…" She paused for a moment and then whispered nervously, "Um…can I actually ask you for a favor?"

Miss Patty smiled at her, "Sure doll, you know you can ask me anything!"

"Well…do you think you could come to the trial? I know its kind of last minute and I'm sure you probably have better things to do." She paused and shrugged her shoulders, "But it might be nice to have more support there…especially from someone who understands what I went through…"

The older woman's eyes began to shine with tears, "Oh sweetie of course I'll be there. Every time you feel unsure of anything you look right at me, okay?"

Lorelai smiled and felt tears welling up in her own eyes, "Thank you Miss Patty. Thank you so much."

She leaned forward and hugged her dear friend and said a silent prayer thanking God for giving her such good friends and family. She knew without them she wouldn't be able to get through this. They were there to remind her that everything was going to be okay and that none of this was her fault. She knew if she was alone she would have fallen a part a long time ago and let Chris get away with it. To be honest she could still be with him if it wasn't for all of them. And for that and so much she was eternally grateful.

The two women said their goodbyes and Lorelai continued on her way to The Dragonfly. When she walked in she was surprised to see Michel standing behind the desk with a smile on his face.

Ever since this had all happened he had been extremely kind to her, his usual scowl and sarcastic comments were hidden away somewhere. As thankful as she was to him for being so supportive and understanding she still wished things would go back to the way they had been. She didn't want to be handled with care anymore like most people had been doing with her.

"Good morning Michel. Sorry I'm a little late…I had a rough start this morning." She said as she placed her bag in her office before returning to stand beside him.

"Not to worry!" Michel said cheerfully, "Things have been pretty slow here. I printed out the menus for the new lunch specials Sookie asked for. I had a meeting with the maid staff to go over the new cleaning regulations and I made sure to rearrange all the guests for over Labor Day Weekend."

Lorelai stared at him in disbelief, "You did all of that before ten o'clock and you call it a slow morning?"

Michel shrugged, "It was no trouble at all. I didn't want you to have to worry about all of that with everything else you have going on."

Lorelai smiled at him, "Michel you know I appreciate how helpful you have been lately. You've been working so much extra because of all the time I have taken off and that has been great. But…you don't have to pretend to like me anymore. It's okay…I can handle the old snarky Michel. In fact I would welcome him right about now! You're starting to scare me…"

Michel tried to keep smiling, "I just want to help you in whatever way I can Lorelai. You shouldn't have to worry about things falling apart here when you have to be focusing on the trial, the wedding and Rory moving. That's a lot to handle without adding the stress of work."

Lorelai shrugged, "I don't mind really. Having work to focus on has helped distract me from the trial and Rory moving. And to be honest most of the wedding preparations are already taken care of thanks to Sookie and my parents. All I really need to do is find my dress now because Rory picked out bridesmaid dresses for everyone."

"You don't have a dress yet?" Michel asked with a frown. "The wedding is less then a month away!"

Lorelai sighed, "I know…but I just can't find the perfect dress. I mean I feel like I had it before and now I can't wear that…it would be bad luck. Luke saw it and that was for a wedding that never even happened. Luke and I want a completely fresh start this time around which would require a whole new dress."

Michel was quiet for a moment letting her words sink in, "You know I haven't decided what I wanted to give you for a wedding present yet…"

Lorelai shook her head, "Michel you don't have to get me a present. All the over time you have been working has been a big enough present! You'll be working a lot while I am on my honey moon too so don't worry about it."

Michel shook his head, "Nonsense. I have to get you a present! I just wasn't sure what to get you that would satisfy your lumberjacks taste as well as yours." He said this with a roll of his eyes and she watched as he scowled.

Lorelai chuckled, she could see the old Michel starting to creep back in. "Yes we do have very different tastes. But Really you don't have to get us anything…but if you insist on something don't worry about Luke. He usually just goes along with whatever I say…" She said with a smile and a shrug.

"Yes well…what if I helped you find your perfect wedding dress?" Michel asked eying her curiously.

"How would you do that?" She asked curiously, she suddenly had visions of herself wearing a dress with giant flowers and a train as long as Princess Diana's and she began to wonder how she could get out of this.

"Well my cousin Alexia works at Kleinfelds in New York City. She owes me a favor so if you wanted I could get you an appointment there this weekend…" He said with a smile.

Lorelai's eyes lit up. "Kleinfelds? Sookie and I called there a few weeks ago and they said they didn't have an opening until at least November!"

Michel shrugged, "It helps to know people in high places Lorelai…how long have I been telling you this? When your fashion sense consists of rhinestones and hello kitty t-shirts you don't end up meeting people in high fashion…"

Lorelai glared at him, "Ha Ha! Very funny Michel." She pouted, "I take it back…I think I want the new nice Michel back!"

Michel rolled his eyes, "Do you want me to call my cousin or not? We could go up with Sookie and Rory this weekend and get you a dress and then you can check out Rory's new apartment. I know you have wanted to see it. It might be a good distraction for you too."

Lorelai smiled at him, "Michel that would be so amazing! Can you really do it?"

Michel nodded, "But of course! Consider it my gift to you."

The smile on her face only grew, "So I uh…I know you aren't big on hugs but do you think this one time you could make an exception?"

Michel tried to grimace but he couldn't help but smile at her, "Oh fine…but it must be a quick one!"

Lorelai giggled and threw her arms around the tiny French man and gave him a tight squeeze. When he began to squirm she pulled away, snuck a quick kiss on his cheek (much to his surprise and dismay) and ran off to the kitchen to tell Sookie they were going to the City for the weekend!

* * *

Very early that Saturday morning, Sookie, Lorelai, Rory, Liz and Michel packed up Sookie's van and Michel's Prius and were ready to go. They were going to pick up Emily and April along the way so that they too could be a part of the wedding dress shopping.

Luke stood outside the Diner with a tray full of to go cup's filled with coffee and couldn't help but smile. He hadn't seen Lorelai this happy in a long time and what made it even better was knowing that she was happy because she was going to get a wedding dress to marry HIM.

Lorelai pulled herself away from her friends and walked over to him on the curb, "We shouldn't be back to late tonight. Seeing as we are leaving at the ass crack of dawn we should make good time."

"So charming…" Luke said with a chuckle, "Although I am impressed that you are so cheerful before six am!"

Lorelai shrugged, "Why wouldn't I be cheerful? I get to spend a whole day playing dress up with some of my favorite people…minus Michel…" She mumbled under her breath, "And at the end of the day hopefully I'll have my perfect wedding dress to marry my perfect man." She finished her speech with a peck on his lips.

He smiled and kissed her back, "Well at the moment Michel probably should be one of your favorite people. Without him there would be no shopping at this Klidenhoffer place…"

Lorelai giggled, "Kleinfelds…"

Luke rolled his eyes, "Whatever. The point is you should be nice to Michel. At least for today and then tomorrow you can go back to being mean to him as usual."

"He's mean to me too!" She said with a playful pout, "I only give back what he dishes out first!"

Luke laughed, "Whatever you say dear."

She huffed and then smiled, "I can't wait to marry you in my pretty, pretty dress."

Luke smiled and took his free hand to hold her hips tightly, "I can't wait to marry you period." He pecked her lips softly, "Thanks for picking up April. It really means a lot to her that you want her to be there."

"Of course she has to be there!" Lorelai said, "She's one of my bridesmaids and my future stepdaughter. I can't make this decisions without her."

"And that is one of the many reasons why I love you." He said leaning into kiss her again, "But you better get going before your mother starts calling you demanding to know why you are late."

Lorelai sighed, "Why did I have invite her again?"

"Because she is your mother and she is paying for the wedding…" He said with a laugh as she pretended to drag her feet behind her.

"Oh fine. But as soon as the wedding is over I say we drop her!" Lorelai said with an evil smirk.

"Hopeless…" Luke muttered as she got into the passenger seat.

"What did you say babe?" She asked turning to him after she buckled her seatbelt.

"Nothing." He said with a chuckle as he handed her the coffee. "You guys drive safe and call me as soon as you get there and before you leave."

"Yes Dad…" Sookie and Lorelai said together.

He rolled his eyes, "Just be careful okay? People in New York City drive like maniacs!"

"Yes! Ranting Luke! I love ranting Luke!" Lorelai said clapping her hands as she remembered his last City rant.

"Well if we don't leave before he really gets going we'll never make it for our appointment." Liz said from the back seat.

Luke chuckled, "Have fun. I'll see you when you get home."

"And you'll have delicious cheese burgers and friends waiting for us after our hard day of wedding dress shopping right?" Lorelai said leaning her head out the window.

He smiled down at her, "You got it." He leaned down and pecked her lips, "Love you."

"Love you too Burger Boy! See you later!" She waved as Sookie began to pull away and Michel followed behind them in his car with Rory.

Luke stood on the curb and smiled as he waved to them and couldn't stop his mind from imagining just how good Lorelai would look in her perfect dress…

* * *

When they finally made it to Kleinfeld's, Alexia brought them to a private showing room where dressed lined the walls. The girls stood in amazement at all the white lace and satin stared back at them.

Lorelai leaned over to Michel, "Remind me to give you a raise…"

Michel smiled at her, "Oh trust me…I will!"

Alexia smiled and clapped her hands together, "So Michel told me when the wedding is so that doesn't leave us much time…do you have any idea of a style you might want?"

Before Lorelai could open her mouth Emily piped in, "She wants a ballgown."

Lorelai glared at her, "Uh no I don't, I want a-"

"I think you would look amazing in a mermaid style dress!" Sookie said clapping her hands together excitedly.

"Not really my style Sooks, I was thinking more along the lines of-" Lorelai tried again.

"Oh what about one of those super sexy ones that are like see through? Luke would love that!" Liz said with a suggestive smirk.

"Lorelai you will have absolutely NO cut outs on your wedding dress." Emily said angrily with her hand on her hips.

Lorelai sighed, "I wasn't planning on it but I-"

"What about a big train and lots of flowers?" Michel asked already walking around and grazing throught he racks.

Rory looked over and saw the nervous look on her mothers face, she quickly walked to her side and looped arms with her. "Why don't we let Mom take a look at a few dresses and get an idea about what she wants? Then we can give her some opinions…but only if they are positive opinions!"

Lorelai smiled at her daughter and mouthed a silent thank you as they walked towards the racks. Everyone dispersed and began to browse through the racks on their own, keeping their opinions to themselves. Lorelai, Rory and April all stood together and began to sort through dresses.

"I think you will look beautiful no matter what you wear." April said, "Dad will think so too, he always talks about how pretty you are."

Lorelai blushed, "Thank you April…you're so sweet."

Rory smiled at her Mom and soon to be step-sister and began to browse the dresses again, "How do you feel about lace, Mom?" She asked as she pulled a few dresses out.

Lorelai smiled, "I like it. I think I could see myself in a dress with lace."

"Want to try a few on?" Rory asked holding out two different dresses for her.

Lorelai nodded and they walked together to the dressing room to try them on. Alexia and Rory helped her put them on and Lorelai modeled them on by one for her friends and family. After an hour, the perfect dress was still yet to be found. Lorelai was beginning to feel discouraged as they took a break for lunch brought in by some of Alexia's co-workers.

"Don't worry Mom…" Rory whispered to her as she squeezed her hand. "We'll find it."

Lorelai tried to smile back, but the truth was she was starting to worry they wouldn't find it before they left the store today. With just under a month until the wedding she worried she wouldn't find a dress at all. They sat all together talking casually as they ate and discussing other wedding details.

A few minutes later, something seemed to catch Emily's eyes and she wandered away leaving everyone else behind. When she returned, she was holding a dress in her hand with capped sleeves, a plunging neckline and lace from top to bottom. It wasn't poofy but would show off Lorelai's curves and had a satin ribbon around the middle.

"Oh my goodness…" Lorelai whispered as she saw the dress. "That dress is beautiful…"

"I know you don't necessarily like my style…but I saw this and I knew you had to try it on. I think it would look beautiful on you…" Emily said with a small smile as her eyes welled up with tears.

Lorelai walked over to her Mom and took the dress from her, "Will you help me put it on?"

Emily looked at her daughter with a surprised expression, she only nodded because the lump in her throat made it impossible for her to speak. Together they walked to the dressing room and closed the door behind them as the rest of their party waited for them. Silently, Lorelai took everything off except her undergarmets and then Emily helped her slip into the dress.

When the back was zipped up and they realized it was the perfect size, both mother and daughter gasped as their eyes met in the mirror. The dress was perfect…the length, color and style fit her perfectly and Lorelai immediately knew this was her dress.

"Oh Lorelai…" Emily whispered as she put a hand over her mouth, "You look stunning…the most beautiful bride."

Lorelai reached up behind her and took her Mother's hand, their eyes met in the mirror and she smiled. "Thank you Mom…"

Emily cocked her head to the side, "For what?"

"For everything…for finding this dress…for being so supportive of me through the trial and with my engagement to Luke. I know we haven't always had the easiest relationship but having you here means so much to me. I hope you know that…" She whispered.

Emily smiled and squeezed her daughters hand, "I do know that. And it means a great deal to me that you want me here…"

Lorelai smiled and then turned to face her, "Can we go show it to everyone?"

Emily nodded and stepped aside to open the door for her daughter, together they walked out of the dressing room. Emily made sure Lorelai didn't trip over the back of the dress. As they stepped into the showing room, everyone immediately went silent and Rory stood up and walked straight to her Mother.

"Mom…" Rory whispered reaching her hand out for her. "Mom you look so beautiful…"

Lorelai smiled, "You think so? I really love this dress but I want you to like it too."

"If you don't get this dress I may have to kill you." Rory teased, "This is definitely the dress…the perfect dress."

Lorelai beamed at her daughter and looked over at her friends and family, most of whom were crying. "What do you all think?"

"I agree with Rory…it's perfect." Sookie said as the tears streamed down her face, "I've never seen such a beautiful bride."

"Dad's gonna love it…" April said with a smile.

Lorelai smiled and turne to Liz, "What do you think Liz?"

Liz continued to smile at her and then stood up, "I think it's amazing…but it needs one final touch…"

Lorelai stared at her questioningly but smiled when she watched her future sister-in-law walk across the room and pick up a flowered wreath. Liz walked up behind her and placed it ontop of her head and arranged it against her dark curls.

"Just like your first date at my wedding…I know Luke loved those flowers." She said squeezing Lorelai's shoulder. "Now its perfect…"

Lorelai looked at herself in the mirror and felt the rush of emotions wash over her. She couldn't believe she was actually standing here with the people she loved picking out her wedding dress to Luke. Sure she technically had already done this but this time around it was different…and this perfect dress proved it.

Alexis walked over to her, "So Lorelai…is this your dress?"

Lorelai nodded through tear filled eyes, "Yes. This is my dress!"

Everyone cheered, Lorelai hugged Michel and thanked him a hundred times for setting this up and they went to the alterations room. Very little had to be done but they assured Lorelai the dress would be delivered to her in two weeks. Michel and Emily paid for the dress together and then the group went out on the town in the city before heading home.

After checking out Rory's apartment, they dropped off April and Emily. Rory went to go pack, Sookie went home to her kids, Liz went home to Doula and TJ and Michel went home to his dogs. Lorelai practically skipped from the car to the Diner and happily walked in as Luke was cleaning up.

He glanced up at her and smiled when he saw how happy she looked, "I thought you were going to call. I was waiting to make dinner for you all…"

She shrugged and plopped down in her usual chair at the counter, "Everyone decided to head home. We dropped off April, she said she would call you tomorrow."

Luke nodded, "How did it go? You look happy so that has to be a good sign right?"

Lorelai leaned across the table and kissed him gently, "I am very happy. Very, very happy, In fact I don't think I have ever been this happy."

"So did you find the perfect dress?" He asked smiling down at her.

Lorelai sighed happily, "Oh Luke its amazing. So much better than that other dress! And you'll never guess who picked it out first!"

"Michel?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No! My Mom!" Lorelai said with a laugh as he slid a cup of coffee in front of her.

"You actually liked a dress your Mom picked out?" Luke asked in disbelief. "Who are you and what have you done with my fiancé Lorelai Gilmore?"

Lorelai sighed happily and took a sip of the coffee, "I know it sounds crazy but she found it and showed it to me…and as soon as I put it on I just knew I had to buy it. Everyone loved it and Liz helped me find the perfect accessory to go with it."

"That scares me…" Luke said with a grumble, "We aren't having a Renaissance themed wedding are we? Because I refuse to wear tights…"

"Air pants babe…air pants." She said laughing thinking about how much T.J. had loved them. "But no we are not having a Renaissance wedding, I can promise you that. But I do think you will appreciate the little something she added to my dress."

Luke nodded, "I can't wait to see it…"

She smiled up at him as he began to wipe down the counter, she watched him for a moment. "Hey Luke?"

"Yeah?" He asked smiling as he continued to finish closing up.

"You're happy right?" She asked softly as she looked up at him over the edge of her coffee mug.

Luke stopped what he was doing and stared at her for a moment, "What?"

She bit her lip nervously, "I just…I want to know if you are happy. Everything has been really revolved around me lately, ya know? And everything is happening so fast and I just…I want to make sure you are as happy as I am. I want you to want this too…"

Luke reached for a towel and wiped his hands off before walking around the counter. He was glad that no one was currently in the Diner and he could talk to her alone.

"Lorelai…" He said as he sat down beside her at the counter. "Of course I'm happy. You know I love you, right?"

She smiled at him and turned her body to face him, "I know you love me. I just…I guess I just want to make sure you are happy and okay with how fast things are moving."

"I asked you to marry me…" Luke whispered trying to crack a smile, "I know it was fast but I didn't want to wait anymore." He paused, "Where is this really coming from?"

She sighed and shrugged, looking down at her hands, "Last time around we had a problem with communication. I just want to make sure everything is okay with us…that there is nothing either of us are hiding. I want to be completely open this time around…"

Luke nodded, "So do I. I promise you that this is what I want Lorelai…this is what I have wanted for so long. We've made a lot of mistakes in the past but I just…I want to marry you. I want to start our life together as soon as possible."

She sighed happily and leaned forward, "So you want to have the wedding and me and my pretty, pretty white dress?"

Luke smiled at her, "Yes. I do."

"You already know your lines!" Lorelai said beaming at him as she leaned in to kiss him gently on the lips.

Luke chuckled against her lips and kissed her back, reaching out to hold her hips. "They aren't to hard to remember."

She pulled back and stuck her tongue out at him, "Be nice Mr. Danes…"

"I'm always nice." He said as he scotched his stool closer to her, he chuckled as Lorelai huffed and he leaned forward again to kiss her. "But I am serious Lorelai…I am happy. So happy…I didn't think we would ever be together again and I know there is a lot going on right now but this is what I want. YOU are what I want."

Lorelai squeezed his hand gently, "You know…even though this whole situation with Christopher is terrible…" She shrugged, "In a way I am kind of happy it happened…I feel like I was to afraid to get out of that relationship even though I wanted to be with you. Not that I would ever want this to happen…it pushed us back to each other and for that I am grateful."

Luke nodded to show he understood, then he caressed her face gently. "I hated being apart from you…"

"I hated it too…" She whispered leaning in to his touch before she looked over at the counter, "Are you almost done cleaning?"

Luke nodded and pulled away, "Should be done in about five minutes. Want to head upstairs and I'll meet you there?"

She smiled and pecked his lips gently, "Yes please." She kissed him again, "And bring pie please!"

Luke chuckled as she pulled away and practically skipped up the stairs towards his apartment. He stood up quickly and got to work to finish cleaning so he could join her upstairs.

When Lorelai entered the apartment, she threw her bag on the recliner and immediately walked to the closet to pull out her favorite blue flannel. She put it against her nose and inhaled deeply, smiling when the overwhelming smell of Luke washed over her. She stripped down and went to freshen up in the bathroom before slipping on the flannel.

When she finished, she walked into the kitchen and was about to pour herself a glass of water when she heard the door open. She smiled when a plate with a rather large piece of pie was put in front of her and Luke's free hand wrapped around her waist.

"What's going on under there…" Luke whispered as he slid his hand on her hip under the hem of his shirt.

She giggled and leaned against him, "Nothing…"

Luke growled when he felt nothing but smooth, warm skin against his fingers. "You aren't kidding…"

She smiled and put the pie down before turning in his arms and wrapping her arms around his neck, "When we get married can I expect pie every night before bed?"

"If I give it to you every night it won't be special anymore." He said before Lorelai laughed, "That sounded dirty…"

"Yes it did." She said as she leaned against his lips to kiss him gently, "But you should know by now that every time with you is special…"

He smiled down at her, "I'm glad you still think so…" He pushed a strand of hair out of her face, "How are you feeling about everything now?"

"You mean us or the trial?" She asked leaning back against the counter.

Luke shrugged, "Both I guess."

Lorelai sighed and let her hands slide down his chest, playing with the buttons on his shirt. "Well I feel great about us. And the trial…I'm not necessarily looking forward to it but I know it will be okay."

"I saw Miss Patty today in the Diner, she said she is coming to the trial too." Luke said holding her close.

Lorelai smiled, "Yeah…we talked the other morning after I had that dream. She's been through this…except she didn't press charges. She knows how scary it is and to have her there to support me will be really helpful."

Luke smiled, "I think that's great. You know that this town loves you…you are very loveable."

She smiled back, "I'm glad you think so…"

Luke reached behind her and broke off a piece of pie before bring it up to her lips, "Here." Lorelai happily took the pie from his fingers and moaned happily, he smiled and continued to talk. "I went to work on the house today with Tom and the guys."

"Aw, how are the guys? I miss the guys. I should go over tomorrow and bring them some beers." She said as she licked her lips.

"They don't need beers Lorelai," He said rolling his eyes, "If you liquor them up while they are building the house the second floor will cave in on our first night there!"

Lorelai giggled, "Man that would be a great story to tell people…"

"With that amount of money we are paying for this house I'd like it to stay standing at least for a few years." He said with a groan.

She smiled, "Fine…" She reached for her water and took a sip, "So how did it look? When I went over yesterday morning they were finishing up the staircase."

Luke nodded, "That's all done, all the walls are up too. It's going to be done sooner than we expected. Plumbing starts next week."

She beamed up at him, "I can't believe it! I'm so excited to actually start moving things in."

"I know. Tom said it will be done by the time we get back from our honeymoon." Luke said reaching for another piece of pie, "And speaking of the honeymoon we really need to pick a place to go…"

Lorelai nodded, "I know. We should finalize that tomorrow…neither of us have to work so we can spend some time looking at different places."

Luke nodded as he fed her more pie, "Good. Oh and I talked to Jess today, he flies in the Thursday before the wedding and he's going to stay with Liz and T.J. he said."

"Good. I'm glad he will be here…I know how important it is for you to have him as your best man." She said smiling at him.

"And you and Rory are okay with seeing him?" Luke asked, "I don't want to make anyone any uncomfortable…"

Lorelai shook her head, "I talked to her a lot about it. She is totally okay with it, she said they have been talking a lot through e-mails lately. It sounds like they are friends more than anything and I want him there too…he's your family."

He nodded once, "Okay then…"

"And you're okay with me and Rory spending the night together at the house before the wedding?" She asked.

Luke nodded, "Yeah. April and I are going to spend the night here at the apartment too. Although all of your stuff will be moved out by then so I don't know what you will sleep on…"

"We'll keep one mattress there." Lorelai said with a smile, "That's all we had the first night we slept there too."

"You'll call me if you need anything right?" He asked staring down at her, even though he knew this was important to her he hated spending nights apart.

"It is bad luck to see the bride the night before the wedding but yes…we will call you right away if we need you." She said holding him against her.

"Well then I guess its all coming together…" He said unable to contain the smile on his face.

"I know. Now that I have the dress it feels even more real…" She whispered leaning in even closer.

He leaned down and kissed her gently, "Hey Lorelai?" He whispered against her lips.

She smiled in between kisses and responded, "Yes?"

"Think we can do some more of that baby making practice thing you are so fond of?" He asked rubbing small circles against her hips.

She laughed and nodded her head, "Yes please!"

He smirked and gripped her hips tightly making her squeal as he lifted her up with ease and she wrapped her legs around his waist. They left the pie on the counter for later and made their way to the bed never stopping their kissing as they went. When Luke lay her down underneath him she smiled up at him and knew that tonight she wouldn't be having any nightmares while she was in his arms…

* * *

**So hope you liked the chapter! The next chapter will be the trial and I just want to remind everyone I am not a lawyer or anyone involved in criminal law so I have only really seen trials on TV. Christopher is pleading guilty but I'm still having lawyer have to take the stand but try not to judge to harshly on my lack of skills when it comes to writting about a trial hahah! Anyway! I'll try and update soon :) **


	14. Chapter 14

**Hey guys, once again I just want to remind you all that I have never seen a real trial. I don't really know how any of this works so while you read this chapter keep that in mind! I did my best but whatever. Okay so here is the trial chapter. I will try and update soon! **

* * *

The day of the trial finally arrived, by 6 am Lorelai was wide awake and sitting on the bathroom floor of Luke's apartment. She had had another bad dream and had thrown up in the toilet before brushing her teeth and trying to pull herself together.

Back in bed, Luke woke slowly and rolled over reaching for her instinctively. When his hands hit nothing but warm sheets he sat up quickly and looked towards the bathroom. When he saw the door was open slightly and the light was on, he knew just where to find her. Standing up he made his way towards the bathroom, hoping he could find a way to get her through today.

Wiping a few stray tears away, Lorelai wasn't surprised to hear the door creak open as Luke walked into the bathroom. She took a deep breath as he sat down beside her, leaning against the tub he put his arm around her and pulled her close before whispering. "Hey…"

Sniffling, she used the sleeve of his flannel shirt to wipe her tears away. "Hey…" She whispered back.

He kissed the top of her head and ran his hand through her hair, "You okay?"

She sighed and rested her head in the crook of his neck, "Just…nervous about today."

"I know…" He whispered against the top of her head, "I wish I could make this easier for you…I wish I could make it go away."

She wrapped her hand around his middle and held him close, "I just want it to be over…I want to move on and never have to think about it again."

"By the end of today your Dad said there should be a sentence so it will be over. We already signed the restraining order papers so you don't have to see him again after today." He said trying to reassure her.

"I know…" She whispered. "But…I still hate it. Especially that Rory has to go through this…"

"I know…" He said rubbing her back, "But she's a big girl…she'll be okay."

Lorelai was quiet for a moment before whispering, "I just…I never wanted her to hate her father. I know what he did was unforgivable but I still feel guilty that she can't have a relationship with him…"

"She is choosing not to have a relationship with him because she loves you and she is angry for what he did." Luke said.

"I know…but still…he's her father." Lorelai said in a shaky voice, "I just…I just feel guilty about it all."

"We've been over this before…this wasn't your fault." Luke said watching her, trying to read her expression. "Yes you made a few mistakes but that doesn't warrant him laying his hands on you, right?"

Swallowing hard, she tipped her head to look at him and nodded. "Right."

"Okay then…let Rory decide how she wants to handle Christopher after today okay? Right now your only job is to focus on your testimony and getting through the trial. And then after today we will be able to really focus on the wedding and put this all behind us. Everything is going to be okay…" He whispered as he pulled her closer to him. "I'm going to be with you the whole time, remember?"

She closed her eyes as a few more tears slipped out and she nodded her head. "I know."

Leaning his face forward, he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I love you."

She breathed a sigh of relief and clung to the t-shirt he was wearing as she pressed against him. "I love you too."

Kissing her once more, he pulled away and wiped her tears away. "Come on…we should go back to bed for a little longer. We don't have to be up for at least another hour and a half."

"I don't think I'll be able to sleep…" She whispered afraid to face her nightmares again.

"Well then I'll just hold you and you can rest a little…" He said rubbing her back affectionately, "Come on…we can't stay in here."

She nodded once and let him stand up before he took her hand and helped pull her off the floor. Cupping her face he tipped her chin up and kissed her lips as he used his thumbs to dry her cheeks. Then he slid his hand down to hold hers and led her back towards the bedroom where he pulled back the covers for her. He watched her crawl in before he lay down beside her and let her snuggle in against him.

With her head on his chest and her hand laying against his stomach, he held her close and traced patterns against the flannel of his shirt that she wore. Occasionally when he could feel her getting upset again he would brush a kiss against the top of her head and whisper words of encouragement. After about 15 minutes, he felt her finally relax against him and he hoped she would get some sleep before they had to wake up to get ready.

* * *

By ten o'clock, Luke and Lorelai were at the courthouse where they met Rory, Richard, Emily, Sookie, Jackson and Miss Patty. Rory walked up to her Mom and took her hand and smiled encouragingly at her.

"I figure if we made it through he great Oreo cookie drought in Stars Hollow of 1997 we can make it through today." Rory said trying to make her Mother smile.

Lorelai giggled and squeezed her hand back, "That was a really long week…"

"Yep. Until that moment we found the last stash of them in Luke's store room I thought I was going to lose you forever…" Rory said shaking her head sadly.

Luke rolled his eyes, "I still don't understand how you got back there without me noticing…"

"Mom was starting to get the cold sweats Luke! I had to make a choice and I knew that even though it was dangerous to go back there…it was either face your wrath or let Mom slip away to the deepest darkest depression of her life." Rory said as she placed a hand to her heart.

"I don't think I was ever more proud of you than I was that day." Lorelai said holding her head a little tighter, "You really made a sacrifice for the team and you took it like a champ…"

"Anything for you Mom." Rory said squeezing her hand to emphasize her point.

"Thanks kid…" Lorelai said squeezing her daughters and back.

"You're really going to try and tell me that going without Oreo cookies for a week because Taylor forgot to order more was harder than raising a kid by yourself at sixteen? Or I don't know…graduating high school and college? What about starting your own business?" Luke asked looking at them in disbelief.

"Oh I would totally raise another kid on my own at sixteen before ever having to go without an oreo for a week again!" Lorelai said adementley.

"Yeah, getting through Chilton and Yale was a piece of cake compared to that." Rory said waving him off.

"Oh cake…" Lorelai said with a dream expression, "I am so craving that oreo cookie crumble cake that they make at Westons right now."

"We should pick some up when we get back into town tonight." Rory said pointing at her, "I'll call in a little while and make sure they have some."

"I will never understand you two…" Luke said shaking his head as he tried not to laugh.

"I've told you before Luke…its better to try not to understand us. It will only give you a headache…" Lorelai said smiling at him affectionately.

Luke nodded, "I have to keep reminding myself that…"

"Now Lorelai, you know that you are going to have to testify today. As long as you tell them the truth you will be fine." Richard said walking over to his daughter, "You already went through everything with Michael so just say it exactly like you said it in his office okay?"

Lorelai nodded slowly, "Okay…"

"And don't look at Christopher…" Emily said reaching for her daughter, "It will only make you nervous. Just stare at us, we'll be right in front of you."

"Okay…" Lorelai whispered again.

The guard poked his head into the hall and whispered to them, "The judge will be in in a few minutes."

"Thank you." Richard said to him before turning back to his daughter, "Meet you inside?"

Lorelai nodded and watched her parents and friends walk into the court room. Rory and Luke stood in front of her and waited for her signal. They knew she would need their help walking in and they stood by patiently and let her make the first move.

Lorelai looked at the tall wooden doors before turning back to Rory, "I know you said you want to be here but if it's to hard for you to see Dad I'll understand if you want to leave. I promise I'll call you as soon as it's over."

Rory shook her head, "Mom I already told you…I'm not going anywhere. This is exactly where I need to be."

"I know you said that but this can't be easy for you." Lorelai said shaking her head.

"No not really but it can't be easy for you either. Yes it will be weird to see Dad but I'll deal with it because I want to be here to support you just like you always support me…" Rory said softly.

"And I appreciate that sweetie but I really think-" Lorelai tried again.

"Mom, I love you and I appreciate that you are trying to protect me here but I'm not leaving. No matter what you say I'm not leaving. I am seeing this thing through with you whether you like it or not." Rory said reaching for her hands again, "So stop trying to push me away. It's not going to work…"

Lorelai sighed, "Okay…"

"Good…" Rory said before turning back to Luke, "When this is all over we can all finally move on. Lets just get through today and then we put it all behind us."

"I just…" Lorelai felt her voice begin to tremble, "I'm afraid to see him. I'm afraid once I do I'll lose my nerve and forget what to say."

Luke stepped closer to her and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "We talked about this, remember? Christopher is pleading guilty which means this will be a lot easier than a normal trial. You just have to go in there, tell them what happened and answer the questions they ask you honestly. Then the judge will decide on a sentence and then its over." Luke whispered.

"But I am afraid of the questions they will ask me…" She whispered feeling the lump grow in her throat, "What if they try and make me look bad and I get flustered?"

"They will probably ask you questions about our relationship but no matter what, Christopher broke the law. Everyone here knows that…just answer as honestly as you can and keep your eyes on us and you'll do fine." He said trying to smile at her.

Lorelai took a deep breath, "Okay…"

"Okay…come on." Luke said wrapping his arm around her as Rory held her hand and they walked together through the large doors.

Luke gave Lorelai a kiss on the lips and Rory hugged her Mom before they took their seats behind the defendants table. Lorelai took her seat beside her father and her lawyer at the table and relaxed when she felt her father press a strong hand against her back to remind her he was right with her.

Her mind was swirling and she tried to remember to breath as the side door opened and Christopher was escorted out with his lawyer and a police office. She only glanced at him once before turning away, but their eyes met in that moment and that was enough to rattle her nerves.

As the bailiff told everyone to rise, Lorelai went through the motions like a zombie glad to have her father beside her guiding her. She didn't hear any of the opening statements and she wasn't even sure how long she had been sitting there before she heard her name being called to the stand.

"Go ahead…" Richard whispered in her ear, "I'll be right here. Just stare at me…don't look at Christopher and tell the truth."

Lorelai swallowed hard, stood up on wobbly legs and walked towards the witness stand. She had watched enough criminal TV shows and movies to know what she had to do next. She felt like a robot as she placed her hand on the bible and swore to tell the truth and nothing but the whole truth. As she sat in the cool wooden chair, she forced her eyes to look straight ahead at her father who nodded encouragingly at her.

"Miss Gilmore, can you please tell the court the extent of your relationship with Christopher Hayden." A calm voice said to her.

Lorelai glanced at Christopher's lawyer and grimaced at the crisp grey suit and blue tie he wore. His slicked back hair and perfectly trimmed eye brows made her think of all the boys she went to high school with. She swallowed hard and looked back at her father before letting her eyes fall on her friends, mother, daughter and Luke.

Luke smiled at her and she took a shaky breath before turning back to Christopher's lawyer, "I have known Christopher since I was about six years old. Our parents were friends…we grew up together. And…"

"And then you had a child together when you were both sixteen, is that correct?" He asked quickly.

Lorelai was caught off guard by his abruptness, "Y-ye-yes. That's correct."

The man turned to point at Rory, "Is that your daughter there?"

Lorelai swallowed hard again and glanced at her beautiful daughter who looked frightened in her seat. She watched Luke wrap a protective arm around her as her mother placed her hand over her knee to keep her steady. She was grateful to them for comforting her little girl when she couldn't.

"Yes. That's her." Lorelai said never taking her eyes off of Rory.

"Lorelai Leigh Gilmore, born in Hartford Connecticut on October 8, 1984. Is that correct?" He asked her.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes."

"And what was your relationship like with Rory's father, my client Mr. Hayden after your daughter was born?" He asked leaning against the wooden box that Lorelai sat in.

"Well…Christopher came in and out of her life when he had time." Lorelai said, "He went to school so he was pretty busy…but he saw Rory when he could."

"But isn't it true that he wanted to marry you before Rory was born?" He asked.

Lorelai licked her lips and felt her eyes flicker towards Christopher who was staring down at the table in front of him. "Yes. He asked me to marry him when we found out I was pregnant. But I told him that we couldn't get married because we were to young…"

"Weren't you to young to have a child too?" Christophers Lawyer asked.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes. But I had no intention of giving Rory up. I felt that not getting married was better for us and for Rory. As much as I cared for her father I knew we wouldn't do well together and I didn't want to expose my daughter to an unhealthy relationship even if it meant she had both parents in her life."

Christophers Lawyer was silent for a moment, "So after Rory was born…Christopher came in and out as you say. Did he offer money to support you both?"

"Sometimes…" Lorelai whispered once again stealing a glance at Christopher.

"And as Rory grew up you developed a bond with another man in town, in fact with several other men. Is that correct?" He asked leaning against the side of the witness stand.

Lorelai swallowed hard and her eyes glanced over to Luke who kept his eyes directly on her. "Um…yes…?"

"You were engaged when your daughter was sixteen to her teacher from Chilton Academy?" He asked looking at her, "But you called that off…and then a few years later you were engaged to the local Diner owner Luke Danes all before you were engaged to and married my client Christopher Hayden?"

Lorelai knew he was trying to make her look bad, and by the way he was talking about her he was doing a pretty good job doing so. "Yes…that is true but-"

"How long have you known Luke Danes?" Christopher's Lawyer asked as he glanced over at Luke and Rory in the stands.

She let out a shaky breath before answering, "A-About ten years…" She stuttered.

"And how did you meet him?" He asked turning back towards her.

Lorelai licked her lips and looked over at Luke, he held his head straight and nodded once letting her know it was okay. "I went into his Diner one day for coffee and to get my daughter something to eat…"

"And what would you say was the nature of your relationship in those first years? Were you just his customer or was there something more going on between you two even then?" He asked.

Lorelai watched as Luke's adams apple bobbed in his throat and she knew he was nervous for her. She had heard the question but the truth of the matter was she wasn't quite sure how to answer it. Luke had been her best friend for so many years before they had gotten together, but deep down she had always known he was more than just a friend. But was that something she wanted to admit right now in front of the court?

"Miss Gilmore?" Christopher's lawyer called, "What was the nature of your relationship to Mr. Danes prior to your engagement?"

Her eyes fluttered open and shut for a few moments before she turned back to the man asking the questions. "He was my friend…my very good friend. My best friend…"

"Is it true that Mr. Danes would often take care of things around your house for you? Fixing things that were broken? Mowing your lawn? Did he even let you eat at the Diner without paying at times?" He asked.

Lorelai nodded slowly, "Yes…" She whispered tentatively.

"So…he did all of those things just because you were friends? There was no other reason or motive behind it?" He asked.

Lorelai shook her head, "No. Luke is a good man, he knew that I struggled to take care of myself and Rory and he was always there when I needed him."

"And how did you return the favors?" He asked with a leery smile as he leaned against the railing again, "Did you have some sort of arraingment?"

Lorelai saw her father fidget in her seat and Luke's face turn to stone, "No! It wasn't like that…Luke never asked for anything in return. He just…he wanted to help us. He cared about Rory and-"

"And you?" He asked, "He cared about you too right? I mean you were engaged to him so there had to be some feelings there…"

Lorelai was flustered and she could feel her face growing red, "I…I mean I cared…he cared about me…he meant a lot but it wasn't…we weren't…it wasn't like that!"

"So for…eight years you were just friends? And then suddenly one day you just became more?" He asked.

Lorelai swallowed hard, "I mean…I guess there was always something there but we just…we didn't act on it…we were friends and we didn't want too-"

"Why did you call your engagement off to Mr. Danes?" The lawyer asked as he glanced back over at his client.

Lorelai stopped for a moment and then looked down at her hands, she couldn't bare to meet Luke's eyes. "It was complicated…"

"Complicated, how?" He asked glancing back at her, "Complicated in the sense that Mr. Danes found out he had a long lost daughter and pushed you out of his life to get to know her? And then when things didn't go the way you wanted them to you showed up at my client's door for some consoling because you knew he would be there to support you? Is that how it was complicated?"

Her eyes brimmed with tears and she wanted to run away from here as fast as she could. "Yes…Luke did find out he had a daughter and it complicated our relationship. And yes…" She paused and took another shaky breath, "I did go to Christopher after a fight with Luke…but I didn't…I wasn't trying…" She sighed and closed her eyes, "I didn't mean to hurt Luke or Christopher I was just…I was confuse and-"

"So when Mr. Danes found out about how my client 'consoled' you, he broke off the engagement, correct?" Lorelai could only nod so he continued, "And then after that…you and Mr. Hayden decided to take up your relationship quite soon after."

Lorelai sighed, "I tried to tell him I wasn't ready for a relationship…but he was very persistent and I was very alone and sad…I never ever meant to hurt him or make him think I wanted more…it just all happed to fast."

The lawyer ignored her comments and continued talking, "So Mr. Hayden moved into your home in Stars Hollow, the same home that you renovated with Mr. Danes. Then the two of you eloped in Paris, came home and even though Mr. Hayden wanted to leave Stars Hollow you did not."

"Stars Hollow is my home…its where my job is. I couldn't just leave it all behind…" She whispered.

"So my client had to live in the same town and the same house that you shared with your previous, and might I add SECOND fiancé. Did you think he would be okay with that? Did you think it wouldn't bother him?" He asked.

"I knew…I knew it would be difficult but I love Stars Hollow and I wanted to stay. That is where I raised my daughter-" She started.

"She is Mr. Hayden's daughter too…" He interrupted.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes. But I raised her…"

"Because you did not want to marry him when you were so young, but if you had you would have had someone to help you raise her." He pointed out.

"I did have help! Everyone in Stars Hollow helped me." Lorelai said as the anger began to build in her, he was twisting all of her words around.

"Yes. Everyone including Mr. Danes…" He said looking back at Luke, "I can't imagine what that was like for Mr. Hayden to have to constantly see your former fiancé all around town. It couldn't have been easy…"

Lorelai's eyes wandered to Christopher who seemed to be staring into her soul. "No…I don't think it was easy for him."

"And even though he tried to tell you he wanted to leave you ignored his request. So naturally when he found out that you had written a letter in Mr. Dane's favor so that he could gain joint custody of his daughter…that had to be difficult for him. Right?" He asked turning back to her.

Lorelai knew what was coming next, she flickered her eyes away from Christopher towards Luke. "Yes…"

"And after months of built up anger and frustration, the worry of not being loved by his own wife had to become just to much for Mr. Hayden to take." He said pointing at his client.

"I wasn't his wife. We weren't legally married and he knew that but failed to mention it to me." Lorelai said daring to meet the man's eyes.

"Yes…but he was afraid that you would leave him if you found out that you weren't legally married. He loved you so much that he wanted to do everything and anything he could to keep you in his life." He said swinging back at her to change her words.

"I'm not the type of person that can be 'kept'." She said with challenging eyes, "Christopher knew that…"

He shrugged, "Maybe that scared him…so naturally when all of his fears came to a head he snapped."

"He hit me." Lorelai said quickly lifting her head in defiance, "He hit me, whether he was angry or not it still wasn't right…"

"Miss Gilmore, have you ever been so angry or so hurt that you have said or did something without realizing it? At least not until much later when you would regret it?" He asked with a smirk, "Like…I don't know sleeping with an ex to get back at someone who hurt you?"

Lorelai quickly turned her face away from him unable to look at anyone; the shame took over her mind and body. Christopher's lawyer must have sensed this, he smiled and tapped the railing of the witness stand before walking towards Christopher.

"I have no further questions at this time." He said pulling at his suit jacket as he sat down beside Christopher.

Lorelai didn't lift her face, even as she heard her own lawyer stand up to approach her. "Miss Gilmore…do you think you could walk me through the night of the attack?"

She closed her eyes tightly and tried to remember how to breath but she just wanted to be done with this. She was so flustered she didn't even care if Christopher went to jail at this point, she just wanted to go home and forget any of this had ever happened.

"Miss Gilmore?" Her lawyer whispered to her in a soft voice.

She turned her head to look at him, he was an old friend of her fathers, a man she knew quite well. She studied his face and felt her heartbeat begin to slow down again when she stared only at him.

"I know this is difficult for you…but if you could let us know what exactly happened that night it would be very helpful." He paused, "Do you need a minute or would you like to continue?"

Lorelai took a breath and looked at her daughter who she could tell had been crying, then she glanced at Luke who looked incredibly angry. "No…I don't…I don't' need a minute. I…" She paused again and sat up straighter, "I was cooking dinner…and Chris came downstairs with the letter…I tried to talk to him about it but he was very upset. He kept yelling and I wasn't able to calm him down…"

"Had you ever seen him like that before?" Her lawyer asked.

Lorelai shook her head, "I had seen him angry before but not like that…he was making me nervous and he had backed me up against the counter in the kitchen. I couldn't get away from him as he continued to yell at me…"

"He was angry that you had any contact with Mr. Danes?" He asked her.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes. He wanted to know if I still had feelings for him…he would barely let me answer and then he started pushing me against the counter. He asked if I loved Luke and I told him no and that I loved him because he was my husband and then…" She paused and swallowed hard, "Then…then he hit me across the face."

"What happened after that?" He asked her leaning in towards her to talk in a soothing voice.

Lorelai sighed, "He must have walked out…I didn't really realize it until I saw my neighbor Babette sitting in front of me. She asked if I was okay…and then when she saw the mark on my face she said she was going to call 911 but I asked her not too."

"And why is that?" He asked her.

"I was afraid of what would happen, of what Christopher would do if I did. I was really confused…and I couldn't think straight. "She said with a sigh. "The next thing I remember is that my daughter was there…and she was with Luke…"

"So your daughter was the one who went and got Mr. Danes, not you?" He asked.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes…she thought he would be able to help."

"And did he?" Her lawyer asked.

"I felt safe with Luke there…I knew that if Christopher did come back he would protect both me and my daughter. He and Rory helped convince me to call the police so that he couldn't come back." Lorelai said.

"And yet Mr. Hayden did come back the follow day, isn't' that correct?" He asked.

Lorelai nodded, "Yes. My parents and Luke had gone home for a little while. I was at my house alone with my daughter and Chris snuck by the cops outside and made his way into the house. He said he wanted to talk…but he got angry when he realized we had been talking to Luke. I was afraid that he would hit Rory…"

"So soon the cops outside heard the noise and came in to arrest Mr. Hayden, right?" He asked.

"Yes…" Lorelai whispered softly.

"And then where did you and your daughter go?" He asked her.

Lorelai glanced over at Luke, "We went to Luke's apartment…"

"Because Mr. Danes makes you feel safe?" He asked her.

Lorelai wanted to leap from the witness stand into Luke's arms, but she knew she couldn't. She kept her eyes on her and he only smiled encouragingly at her, but deep down she knew that he was fighting his own inner battle.

"Yes…" She said, "I knew he would keep us safe…and I had to get out of the house. I couldn't stand being there…"

He nodded slowly and thought for a moment, "Is it true Miss Gilmore that after this all happened and you realized you weren't legally married, you and Mr. Danes reconciled and once again became engaged?"

Lorelai swallowed hard again, "Yes. That is true…"

He nodded and walked in front of the witness stand, "I'm sure Mr. Hayden's lawyer has a few things to say about that…but right now I want to talk to you about it. Why did you decide to once again become engaged to Mr. Danes?"

Lorelai glanced back at Luke, he smiled sweetly at her trying to make her feel more comfortable, "Because…I love him. I know that no matter what we have been through, we are always going to be involved with each other. I know that I can always depend on him, no matter what."

"Do you think it was hard for Mr. Hayden to know how strongly connected you were to Mr. Danes?" He asked, "Especially knowing that he was so helpful with raising his daughter when he wasn't around?"

"Yes. I do think it was hard…I just…" She sighed, "I never meant for any of this to happen…I know I played a part in it but…" She felt her eyes well up with tears, "I never thought Christopher could do something like this. And I did love him…just…"

"Not the way you loved Mr. Danes?" He said with a knowing smile.

She nodded once, "Exactly…"

"So you understand why Mr. Hayden was so upset? You think he had a right to be upset?" He asked.

"Yes…" Lorelai whispered, "But I don't think he had the write to hurt me that way…"

He nodded and smiled at her, "Thank you Miss Gilmore…that's all the questions I have for now."

Christopher's lawyer quickly stood up and walked towards her, "So knowing how difficult it was for my client to be constantly reminded of your ex-fiance you still decided to write that letter. Why is that?"

"Because I wanted Luke to have a relationship with his daughter. I probably should have told Christopher about it but I knew he would be angry…" She whispered.

"You wanted him to have a relationship with his daughter, the same daughter that put a rift in your relationship to begin with?" He asked curiously.

"It wasn't all about that…we had other issues we needed to work on too." She tried to reason with him.

"So despite all the problems you had with Mr. Danes you say you still loved him more than you loved Mr. Hayden?" He asked.

Lorelai sighed, "Yes…"

"And just so I have this correct…at this point you have now been engaged four times, twice to the same man?" He asked with a raised eyebrow, "But none of those engagements ever resulted in an actual legal marri…"

Lorelai's hands began to shake, "Yes but-"

"That is quite a track record for someone your age…" He said with a smirk, "Having a kid at 16, having countless engagements, different men roaming in and out of your daughters life. It doesn't seem like you always shad her best interest at heart…"

Lorelai felt her heart drop and saw her lawyer jump as her father looked outraged, "Objection! What does that have to do with this case?"

"Sustained…" The judge said, "That wasn't a question Mr. Walker…do you have anymore questions or are you done with this witness?" The judge asked.

Christopher's lawyer stepped back and put his hands up, "Next witness your honor…"

The judge turned back to Lorelai, "You may step down Miss. Gilmore."

Lorelai quickly stood up and walked directly to her seat beside her father. She never glanced at Luke, Rory or any of her friends but she could feel them all staring at her, especially Luke.

"You did well…" Richard said reaching for her hand. "They will talk to Christopher now and then it will be over…I promise. It's okay…"

"He made me sound like a tramp up there." She said through gritted teeth, "That I deserved this…"

"That is what he is supposed to do…but everything will be okay. I promise. You know who you are Lorelai…you didn't do anything wrong. Just try and relax…don't look at Christopher when he is up on the stand." He said to her.

Lorelai never looked up as Christopher took the stand, she stared at her hands, especially at the sparkling ring on her finger. She could hear Christopher pledging to tell the truth but she felt like she couldn't move.

"Miss Gilmore gave us a little insight to your relationship Mr. Hayden. She made it seem that you weren't involved at all in your daughters life, would you say that is true?" His lawyer asked.

"I wasn't involved as much as I should have…from the beginning I tried to do the right thing by marrying Lorelai but she said no. I guess after that I started to back off a bit…I showed up when I was in town. Tried to call on holidays and birthdays…but I could have done more." Christopher said honestly.

"Mr. Hayden do you love your daughter? Do you think Miss Gilmore did a good job raising her on her own?" He asked him.

"Of course. Rory is such an amazing young woman, I didn't expect to have her when we did but she is still amazing. Lorelai did an amazing job with her, which is something I have never worried about. That's the hardest part about all of this, knowing that my daughter is hurt and knowing that she must be angry with me." Christopher said glancing over at Rory who wouldn't look back at him, when he saw the angry look on Luke's face he turned back towards his lawyer.

"And how does it feel to know that another man…Luke Danes was there for your daughter while she was growing up?" He asked.

"For awhile I was happy because I knew that they had someone to take care of them. But over the years I realized how strong my feelings still were for Lorelai and by then I grew to really despise Luke. When Lorelai and Luke started dating, I had a hard time accepting it. In fact so did her parents, her own mother came to me and asked me to try and break them up because she knew we belonged together." Christopher said.

Rory felt her Grandmother jump beside her at his words and she tried to squeeze her hand to calm her. "So on that night when Miss Gilmore came to your apartment…you knew that she was engaged to Mr. Danes right?"

"Yes. I knew that. But she was so upset…I had never seen her like that. So I invited her in and we talked a lot…we had a few drinks and maybe it shouldn't have happened but it did. And I didn't regret it because I loved her." Christopher said.

"And when Mr. Danes found out…how did he react?" His lawyer asked.

Lorelai felt her heart jump in her chest, she looked out of the corner of her eye and saw the color drain from Luke's face. "He came to my apartment and punched me in the face and then left…"

"He punched you? He actually physically assaulted you?" He asked him.

"Yes. We also fought after Lorelai and I got married in the town square." Christopher said honestly.

"So you both hit each other that time?" He asked.

"Yes. I was angry because I knew that Lorelai still had feelings for Luke…I felt like he was always going to come between us. I wanted her to let him go and just be happy with me but she never could be. It was driving me insane." Christopher said.

"And so that day when you found the letter…you felt betrayed by Lorelai?" He asked, "And you knew that you weren't legally married so you felt her slipping away…"

Christopher nodded, "Yes. I know it was wrong of me to not tell her we were actually married. But I just couldn't bring myself to do it…knowing the woman you love, loves another man is one of the worst feelings in the world. It can make you do horrible things…things you would never dream of doing."

"Do you still love Miss Gilmore?" He asked Christopher.

Taking a deep breath, Christopher looked over at Lorelai. "I will always love Lorelai. She knows me better than any other person in this world and I wish to God things could be different." Lorelai lifted her head slowly to look at him, "As soon as I hit her…I felt sick. I never wanted this…I just I wanted her to love me. I know what I did was wrong but I just snapped…I was at the end of my rope. I knew I had no chance of keeping her and I was angry at myself and at her for lying to me…making me think she loved me and I just reacted. I will never do something like that again…"

"And how do you feel now knowing she is engaged to Mr. Danes again?" He asked.

"Objection! What does that have to do with this case?" Lorelai's lawyer asked.

"Sustained." The judge said, "Mr. Walker ask another question or step down for the prosecution to address the witness."

"No further questions…" Mr. Walker said walking away.

Lorelai's lawyer stood up and walked towards Christopher, "I can understand that you were upset about finding the letter that my client wrote for Mr. Danes. But do you believe that hitting a woman is okay?"

Christopher shook his head, "I have never laid a hand on any woman ever. And I never will again."

"As angry as you were…do you think you could have handled the situation in another way?" He asked.

"I should have talked to her about it but at that point I couldn't control myself. I was so upset I couldn't think rationally and I made a terrible decision. I regret it more than I have ever regretted anything." He said.

"I know that you said that you have loved Miss Gilmore for a very long time…you had a kid together so there will always be a connection. But…I'm just curious…why would you want to be with someone you know deep down doesn't love you the way you want? How could you stay with someone whom you know loves another man?" He asked curiously. "Why didn't you just walk away? Why didn't you just comfort her as a friend that night she came to you and leave it at that?"

"Because I couldn't…when it comes to Lorelai Gilmore it isn't easy to walk away. She is the most amazing women I have ever known and there is something about her that always pulls me back in. I knew that night she came to me after her fight with Luke that I shouldn't let it get to far but I missed her. I just…I wanted her in anyway I could have her. I thought I could handle her feelings for Luke because I figured eventually she would forget about him and love me but she didn't." Christopher said shaking his head.

"But if you really loved her…wouldn't you want her to be happy?" He asked, "Even if it meant being happy with another man?"

"Yes I want her to be happy. But I want to be the one to make her happy…" Christopher replied.

"But when you realized it wasn't going to work, why didn't you just let her go? Why did you let it get to this point?" He asked.

"Because like I said…Lorelai Gilmore is one of a kind. Once you know her its impossible to walk away. I knew that that time if I did I would never have another chance and I was so desperate that I was willing to do anything to keep her." He said.

"You were willing to do anything…like hit her?" Lorelai's lawyer asked.

"Objection!" Christopher's lawyer yelled as he stood up.

Lorelai's lawyer stepped back, "Your witness…"

"Mr. Hayden, you agree that what you did was wrong, correct?" Mr. Walker asked.

Christopher nodded, "Yes. I know what I did was terrible."

"But in that moment you just couldn't control your emotions? You felt like everything was crashing down around you and so you snapped? You acted in a way that you never would under normal conditions?" He asked.

Christopher nodded. "Correct."

"No further questions your honor…" Mr. Walker said stepping back.

"You may step down Mr. Hayden, and now we will hear closing arguments if neither side has any further witnesses." The judge said.

Christopher's lawyer stepped forward again and paused for effect, "My client has been in love with this woman Lorelai Danes since he was young. He agrees that he made mistakes over the years but he tried to do the right thing by marrying her at a young age. However she turned him down…but his love for her still remained. He knows that what he did in both assaulting Miss Gilmore and failing to tell her they weren't married was wrong. However…haven't we all done crazy things when we were in love? Haven't we all ever been that desperate to be loved back that we have made mistakes to keep the person we love? Mr. Hayden found that letter Miss Gilmore had written for her ex-fiancé Mr. Danes and he snapped. In that moment he felt his whole world slipping away again and he couldn't bear to lose her again. He made a choice under extreme duress and now has to live with that regret. How much more can we punish a man who has lost everything?" He stepped back towards his seat and sat beside Christopher.

Lorelai's lawyer stepped up, "Today we have heard from both parties in this case. Miss Gilmore agreed that her relationship with Mr. Danes was difficult for Mr. Hayden to understand. She felt Mr. Hayden's fears were justified. She has agreed that she made mistakes in both relationships…however…" He paused and turned towards the jury. "Under our criminal law…assault is a crime. Yes Mr. Hayden was upset but striking another person, especially a woman is unforgiveable. We have all done things we regret while we were upset but hitting another person is illegal. Miss Gilmore was afraid of him that night, she asked him to stop to let them talk things through but he ignored her. He chose to keep pushing her until he ultimately struck her across the face and then ran away. What he did was wrong…if we let every person get away with a crime because they had their heart broken…there would be a lot of criminals in this world. Mr. Hayden had countless opportunities over the years to try and win back Miss Gilmore but he chose to do it when she was already involved with another man. You cannot fault my client for caring for two men and choosing the wrong one. Physical assault is never okay, and should be punished by law. Remember Miss Gilmore's pain and make the right choice." He said as he stepped away.

As her lawyer stepped back and sat beside her, Lorelai felt completely drained. She heard the judge call a recess while the jury deliberated. She felt her father put his hand on her to let her know they could get up but she was unable to move.

Richard looked back at Luke hopefully, "Hey…Lorelai…" Luke whispered behind her as he leaned over the wall separating them. "Come on…lets get some coffee while we wait."

Lorelai shook her head, "I don't want any…"

"You always want coffee…" Luke whispered trying to get her to turn towards him, "But…lets just go for a walk. Come on…you shouldn't sit here and wait…it will drive you crazy."

Lorelai stood up quickly, "I need to use the restroom. I'll be back before the jury comes back." She stepped around her father and quickly walked down the aisle away from her friends and family.

"Mom…" Rory whispered trying to run after her.

"Let me go…" Miss Patty whispered turning towards Lorelai, "I've had some experience with this…let me talk to her."

Rory stared at her for a moment and then nodded slowly, "Okay…"

Miss Patty quickly followed Lorelai out of the court room and towards the bathroom. When she pushed open the door, she immediately heard Lorelai crying in one fo the stalls. Sighing, she walked towards the sound and leaned against the door knocking gently.

"Lorelai…sweetheart it's me Miss Patty. Can you come out and talk to me? No one else is here but us…" She whispered.

Lorelai was quiet for a moment before she stood up and opened the stall to face her, "I just…I feel so stupid. I can't believe we are even here and I just…I feel like I've screwed up so much in my life. I mean Jesus I never even thought about the fact that I have had so many failed engagements!"

"Oh please sweetie…at least you didn't end up marrying all of them! How do you think I look to people?" Miss Patty asked. "You don't think I know what people have said about me over the years?"

"Well how do you deal with it? Because right now I am so humiliated. I want to go to Luke and tell him to walk away now and find someone else. He deserves so much better than me." Lorelai said glancing down at the ring on her finger.

"Oh honey…that man loves you more than anyone else on this planet. We have all known that for years, way before you ever realized it. And you shouldn't feel embarrassed…who hasn't had failed relationships? Yes you were engaged to Max and Luke, but things happen. Life happens…don't listen to anything anyone says about you. Worry about what you think of yourself…worry about making yourself happy. And Luke makes you happy, doesn't he?" Miss Patty asked.

"Yes. He does." Lorelai whispered.

"Well okay then…screw what everyone else has to say. If you are happy and marrying him is what YOU want to do then do it. Don't let some stuffy lawyer make you feel bad about yourself. It's not your fault that you are so irresistible men love you! Trust me…it's a curse." Patty said with a smirk.

Lorelai chuckled, "So I'm not a completely terrible person?"

Miss Patty shook her, "You are the least terrible person I have ever met. You are amazing Lorelai and I know that you and Luke are going to be happy. And lets be honest…its not like he has the perfect track record when it comes to relationships either. You know he doesn't judge you for your past…he just loves you."

Lorelai nodded, "You're right…"

"Well alright then…lets go back out there and hear what the jury has to say. And then when this is over…you will go back to Stars Hollow with Luke and you two will get married and finally start your lives together. Okay?" She asked.

Lorelai took a shaky breath and wiped away her tears. "Okay…"

"Okay…" Patty said pulling her in for a hug, "Never let them see you cry dear, keep your head up and be proud of who you are."

Lorelai hugged her back and let her lead her out of the bathroom. She wasn't surprised to see Luke standing anxiously out by the courtroom doors. He perked up when he saw her and immediately began to walk towards her.

"Hey..." He whispered nervously.

Patty looked at Lorelai and winked, "I'll be inside…"

Lorelai nodded and then let Luke take her hand, "Hey…"

"Listen I know what is going on in your head right now but don't listen to all that crap, okay? You are an amazing mother and you and I both made mistakes that led to us breaking up. I don't' care that you have been engaged before…all I care about is that we are engaged now and getting married. I love you, no matter what, okay?" Luke was talking so fast she wondered if he had even been able to take a breath.

She smiled at him, "I just…I'm feeling a little insecure right now. Not about us…I know I love you and I know you love me. I'm just…I'm upset with myself."

"We agreed to focus on the future right? No worrying about the things we have done in the past. It can't help us now…none of it can be changed." He whispered.

"I know we need to focus on the future but right in this moment…it's not that easy. Not when I had to be up there…and listen to Christopher and his lawyer. It was just…it was too much. I'm just so exhausted right now…" She said with a sigh.

"I know…" He whispered leaning up to caress her face. "I know…but nothing that either of them says matter to me. All I care about is that you love me…and that you want to marry me. That's all that matters…"

"I do want to marry you…" She whispered staring at him. "I really do…"

"Well good…" He said smiling at her, "Because I want to marry you too…" He stepped closer to her and kissed her forehead gently, "Come on…everyone went across the street to get something to eat. It could take awhile for the jury to come back…you need a break from here for a little while."

She reached for his hand again and squeezed it, "Stay with me?"

He pulled her up beside him and nodded, "Always…" He said as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and held her close.

As they walked together out of the court house, they knew that no matter what the verdict was they were going to be together. It didn't matter what anyone else thought of them as long as they knew how they felt about each other that's all that was important.

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**Okay so hopefully that wasn't to bad! Don't judge to harshly! I did my best :) But the verdict will be in the next chapter, this one was already getting pretty long and I ran out of time. I will try and update soon! Please send in those reviews! They really help motivate me to write :) THANKS! **


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey guys, thanks for all the feedback. A lot of you sent me reviews or messages saying that the whole trial thing was wrong because he pleaded guilty so there would be no jury. Like I said before I have no idea how any of that works hahaha so oh well! I changed it in this one so there is no jury, just the judge's decision. The sentencing is probably wrong too but whatever its just a story of fiction I don't know how that stuff works and I wasn't gonna research it for a piece of fanfiction hahaha! Anyway, here is the next chapter! I will try and update soon! Thanks :) **

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With Rory home, Lorelai and Luke decided to sleep at her house the night after the trial. They all went out to dinner with the Gilmore's and then went back to the house together. They were all so exhausted, Rory took Paul Anka to bed and Luke and Lorelai retreated upstairs. They didn't talk much, mostly because Lorelai didn't have the strength she was spent from the day. So instead of pushing her, Luke held her until she finally fell asleep.

The next morning, her eyes began to flutter open as the sun streamed in through the windows. As quietly as she could, she tiptoed out of the room and down the stairs. Paul Anka padded out of Rory's room and Lorelai made sure to shut her door silently before slipping out the front door and curling up on the to step of the porch with him. She scratched behind his ears and stared out at the early morning sunrise, something she had never really done.

As the sun came over the trees she thought back to the trial yesterday and how Christopher's lawyer had made her feel. But she thought more about the look on Christopher's face when the verdict was read.

_As everyone took their seats again, Lorelai tried to keep her heart from pounding in her chest. Miss Patty and Luke had both tried to reassure her that she wasn't a bad person but it was hard to do when every mistake you've made has been thrown at you in a very public setting. She licked her lips and forced herself not to look towards Christopher at the opposite table even though she could feel him staring at her._

_As the Judge walked in, they all stood up briefly and then sat again and waited for him to speak. He took only a few moments to gather his papers but to Lorelai it felt like an eternity. She wanted to leave here and never look back again, and the waiting was torture._

_Finally he cleared his throat and began to talk, "After going through all the evidence in this case I have come to what I think is an appropriate sentence. Please rise Mr. Hayden."_

_Lorelai's eyes flickered over towards Christopher and saw him staring wide eyed at the man that was about to decided his fate. She studied his body language and noticed he looked smaller to her, like he had lost weight since going to jail. He almost reminded her of the teenage boy she had once been so smitten with, but she reminded herself that was a long time ago. They were two very different people now and there was no going back to that point…_

_"Mr. Hayden…while I can sympathize with your emotional turmoil over realizing the woman you loved was in love with someone else…" He paused and glanced at him over his papers, "Abuse in any form is illegal and should be punished. The fact that you hid the fact that you weren't legally married shows your own instability and the instability of your relationship with the victim. Given this information, it is clear you had ample opportunity to try and change the fate of your relationship and how and if it would end. You had no right to put any physical harm on anyone no matter how distressed you were. However, this is your first offense and first arrest therefore I am charging you with 18 months and 2-year probation following your release. You are to attend anger management classes at least once a week both while you are imprisoned and after you are released. Upon your release, you are not to go within 150 yards of the victim or her daughter at any time for the next three years. At the end of those three years, the victim can try and reinstate this order. Should you break these rules you will be sent back to jail. I see here another hearing will be put in place in regards to the custody of your other daughter when you are released. Your 18-month sentence begins today and will be closely monitored and can be shortened or lengthened depending on behavior. You will also have to pay 5,000 in damages to the victim for pain and suffering. With that I close this case and court is adjourned."_

_With the bang of his gavel, Lorelai glanced over at Christopher who was staring down at the table. As the cop walked up behind him to place the handcuffs around his wrists he happened to glance over at her. His eyes looked red and very distant, she didn't recognize him anymore. He seemed to nod his head once in her general direction before he was escorted out of the room and she watched until the door shut behind him._

_Everything seemed to be going in slow motion until she felt her father's strong hand on her shoulder. "Lorelai?"_

_She turned towards him quickly, "Dad…"_

_He smiled at her, "Lorelai considering the circumstances I think that was the best outcome we could have asked for. Are you alright?"_

_Lorelai thought about his words for a moment before turning to look at the door that Christopher had disappeared behind. "I don't know…"_

_He squeezed her shoulder, "Come on…lets get you home."_

_She let him lead her towards Luke, Rory and the rest of her friends and family. She felt Luke's arms around her as well as her daughters but she didn't seem to register any of it. She watched her father shake hands with her lawyer and offer words of thanks as they walked out of the courthouse._

_She felt Luke lead her towards the car and Rory slide in beside her but she still felt like she was in a daze. When her mother insisted they go to dinner, she went into pilot mode and was going through the motions without feeling any of it. She was aware of Luke whispering words of comfort to her that night in bed but her mind was on fast forward and she wasn't able to process any of it…_

Now sitting here on the porch she pulled her legs up against her chest and rested her chin against her knees. It felt like every mistake in her life was hitting her like a ton of bricks all at once and it was overwhelming. She had hoped after the trial she would feel a sense of relief but at the moment she felt confused and sad. She didn't want Luke to see this because she was afraid it was because she still had feelings for Christopher. And the truth of the matter was she would always care about him…he was the father of her child but now things were just different.

But more than anything she was upset with herself and questioning many of the decisions she had made. She wasn't sure how long she was sitting out there by herself, but by the time the sun was all the way in the sky the front door opened and Luke stepped out beside her.

She didn't have to look towards him to know it was him, but he sat down beside her on the steps. "I got worried when I didn't see you beside me…"

She wiped at a stray tear, "I just needed some air…"

He kept his eyes on her as he reached up to push a few stray strands of hair behind her ear, "I don't want to push you but I really do wish you would talk to me…I want to help you."

She sighed and closed her eyes, "I'm afraid to talk to you…"

Her words ripped through him and he grimaced, "Lorelai we agreed that this time around we would be open with each other about things. It's the only way we are going to make this work…whatever you are feeling you can tell me. I promise I will listen and not get upset."

"I'm afraid you'll take it the wrong way…" She whispered staring out at the grass, still afraid to meet his eyes.

"Just try and explain it to me…" He whispered rubbing her back gently hoping to soothe her.

Sighing, she sniffled and ran a hand over Paul Anka's head. "I don't know…I was just looking at Christopher in that court room yesterday and I kept thinking about the kid he was growing up. I just…I didn't recognize him in there and it scared me. But more than that I wanted to know how we got to that point…" She paused for a moment trying to find the right words to use, "I just…I never in a million years thought we could be here. I mean he is going to prison…I always liked him because he was a bit of a rebel but I never actually thought he would go to prison…"

"Well he broke the law…there are consequences for that." He whispered.

Lorelai nodded slowly, "And I know that. I guess I just don't understand how it got to this point. Sitting there listening to his lawyer talk about my past I just…I felt so much regret wash over me. I mean…I feel like I've tried to give Rory the best life possible but I kind of feel like I did expose her to a lot of things that she shouldn't have seen. Maybe I didn't do such a good job and maybe that's why she had those issues last year and maybe I-"

"Lorelai stop." Luke said shaking his head as he scooted closer to her, "You are an amazing mother. That guy was trying to make you look bad to gain sympathy for Christopher but all the crap he brought up doesn't matter. None of that caused Rory to steal a yacht and drop out of Yale. Those were her own choices. We all make mistakes…there is no one in this world that is perfect. You have to know that…I mean Jesus think of all the sacrifices you made for Rory. No one could doubt that you are a good mother!"

She looked over at him, "Okay but…I still feel like I have left this path of wreckage in my life. Like failed relationships…I let Max think I loved him and wanted to marry him and then I just walked away. And clearly I was an idiot with the whole Jason thing because he wasn't getting that I wanted out not to mention the fact the whole damn thing started as a way to piss off my parents. I mean if that doesn't say I'm screwed up I don't know what does! I won't even get into the crap I've done to my parents and then there's you…" She said glancing over at him.

"Lorelai we agreed to-" He started to say.

She rolled her eyes, "I know, I know. We agreed to put the past behind us and move forward but that's hard to do when the past is literally thrown in your face all at once." She sighed, "I just…I feel like I have been hurting you for years."

"What are you talking about?" He asked her cocking his head to the side.

"Luke…I'm not as naive as I would appear to be. I think I knew you had feelings for me…but I didn't want to admit that. I just…I liked the attention but more than that I liked that I could always count on you. I liked knowing I could call you and you would be there to save Rory and me no matter what. That's selfish Luke…for eight years I pulled you along and then I'd get mad when you were with someone else. I mean when you were with Nicole I wanted to strangle you! I was so mad but I had no right to be…I never made any indication that I liked you." She said as the tears began to fall again. "I'm a horrible person. I think I used you because I was to afraid to change our relationship because I figured when you saw what I was really like you'd go running for the hills."

"Well it's not like I tried to let you know how I felt either Lorelai. I had plenty of opportunities to tell you my intentions but I didn't." He said shrugging. "That's my own fault."

"But doesn't that say something about me too? You were afraid to tell me the truth because you were afraid I would reject you." She said looking at him feeling frustrated, "I'm a terrible person to make you think that…to let you take care of me the way you did and give you nothing in return. It's selfish!"

Luke sighed and tried to scoot closer to her but she flinched and his heart ached, "I'd do it all again…you have to know that. I never expected anything from you…ever. I did those things because I cared about you but you were a good friend too."

"Oh really? Like when?" She said as her voice began to rise, as she got angrier with herself. "Name one time I was a good friend to you!"

He squinted at her and knew this was turning into a fight he wouldn't win anytime soon. "Like the time you took over the Diner when my Uncle died so I could deal with the preparations. And then you got the town to show up at the ceremony and at the Diner later. You didn't have to do that but you did because you are a good person and an amazing friend."

She sighed, "Okay one time I was a good friend, great. Compared to all the things you did for me I still sound like a bitch."

"Well what about when you bailed me out of jail with the Nicole fiasco? Or when you went out and bought me new suits or all the times you listen to me complain about Rachel or Jess or-" He tried to reason with her.

"Oh God don't even bring up Jess. Me telling you to go to hell and accusing you of not caring about Rory does not make me a good friend it makes me the biggest bitch of all time." She said resting her head in her hands.

"Come on Lorelai…" He tried to reach for her again but she jumped at the contact and stood up, walking down the front steps. "Where are you-"

"I mean lets face it I have the worst track record ever Luke. I'm not a good person. Why, why would you want someone like me? Why are you here right now? Why did you ever forgive me the first time we broke up? Why did you forgive me for sleeping with Christopher? Was it because you felt bad that he abused me? Did you feel obliged to do it? You could have anyone in the world Luke! And yet you chose me and I just…I don't get it. I don't get why any one would want to be nice to me let alone you…" She said as she paced in the front lawn.

Paul Anka had lifted his head and let his head follow her as she walked quickly back and forth. Luke felt angry now that she was so unsure of herself; so unsure of them, he squared his shoulders and stood up quickly.

"You have to stop this." Luke said with his jaw locked, "This is what you do…you self destruct when you get scared because you think you will protect yourself but your only hurting yourself. Stop trying to push me away!"

Lorelai stopped pacing and whirled around to look at him, "See even you admit that I'm a total mess! God Luke, why the hell are you still standing here? Go! You need to go! I can't do this again, I won't do this to you again!"

"Lorelai stop it." He said taking a step closer to her, he reached for her and when she flinched again he held her upper arms tighter. "Stop it. Stop this right now."

Lorelai glanced down at his hands against her tightly and she had flashbacks, "Let go of me! Don't! Don't touch me!"

The front door opened as Paul Anka began to bark and Rory quickly walked onto the porch, "What's going on?"

"Lorelai please…" He whispered lessening his grip on her, "Don't do this…please don't do this. I'm begging you…"

"I want you to go!" She screamed as the tears fell down her cheeks, "I don't want you here. GO! Leave! Just leave!"

Rory quickly trotted down the steps and glanced around to see if any of the neighbors had come out to see what was going on. "Mom calm down. What's wrong?"

"Your Mom is upset about the things that were said about her in court yesterday and she's using it to push me away." Luke said, never taking his eyes off of Lorelai knowing she was slipping away again before his eyes.

Rory looked at Luke and then glanced at her Mom and saw the fear and confusion in her face. "Mom all that stuff that Dad's lawyer said doesn't matter. You have to know that."

Lorelai shook her head adamantly and ignored her daughter, "Luke I want you to leave. I don't want you here."Out of his own fear he gripped her arms tightly again, "Stop. Stop saying that! Please, you don't mean it! Stop it!"

The panic rose up in her face again, "Let me go!"

Rory could see the pain in both of their faces but she knew at the moment there was nothing that could be said that would change her Mothers mind. Rather than let things escalate she knew she had to break this up for the time being.

Putting a hand over one of Luke's she pulled at them, "Luke let go…"

He whipped his head to look at Rory, shock written all over his face. "Rory I-"

She nodded, "I know. I know, okay? But…right now its not going to matter. Just…let go."

His eyes looked back at Lorelai and then down at his hands gripping her arms and he saw the fear in Lorelai's face. Quickly, he let his hands fall to his sides and painfully watched Lorelai walk around him and run into the house, slamming the door behind her.

"Rory-" He started as he whipped around to look at the door.

Reaching for his hand, Rory gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Luke you know her as well as I do. When she gets like this there is no getting through to her."

He pointed towards the door, "But I swore I would never let her walk away again…I can't just leave."

She smiled sadly at him, "I will let her calm down and then talk to her. She's just overwhelmed right now…as difficult as yesterday was for all of us you have to think of what it was like for her. It's not that she is in love with my Dad but she did care about him at one point. Imagine if you watched Rachel going to jail for something like that…wouldn't you feel guilty? Wouldn't you feel sad? What if it was April's Mom? She's feeling guilty, like she took my Dad away from me and she's unsure of herself. She loves you Luke…we both know she does but she's afraid. She doesn't trust herself because that asshole lawyer brought up ever mistake she has made and now she's a mess…she just needs some time."

"But we have already wasted so much time…" Luke whispered, "I can't wait anymore. The weddings in three weeks! The house is almost done. We can't go back now…I can't lose her."

"And you won't." Rory said shaking her head, "You won't, I can promise you that. She just…she needs some space. Maybe just today or maybe a few days but she will come back to you. I will make sure of that. I'm not about to move to New York City if the two of you are apart again so I will make sure she does come to you. Do you think you can trust me enough to help her through this? I will have her come to you when she's ready…"

Luke sighed and looked back up the steps towards the house, "I hate it when she's hurting…"

"I know you do…" Rory whispered, "I know. And that's why I know this will work itself out…"

Luke was silent for a minute as he let her words sink in, and then he glanced down at his own hands. "Rory…?"

She could see the fear in his own face and she put a reassuring hand on his arm. "I know you would never hurt her like that…you are not that kind of man."

"I didn't mean…" He whispered, "I just felt her slipping away and I-"

"I know…" She whispered giving his arm a squeeze. "It's okay…and deep down she knows that too. But her mind is to clouded at the moment to see reason…that's why she needs some space. I promise I will call you if anything changes or we need you…"

He looked back at the house, "I don't want to leave…"

"I know. But I think it's for the best right now…" She whispered, "I promise she'll come see you as soon as she is ready. Even if I have to drag her kicking and screaming she'll be there."

Luke sighed knowing there wasn't anything else he could do at the moment, he nodded once. "I think I'll go fishing…I can't bear to be at the Diner right now. But I'll have my cell phone with me…call me. Please…call me."

She smiled and stood on her tiptoes to hug him, "I will. Don't worry…"

Luke hugged her back and then pulled away quickly as he walked to his truck to leave. He knew that if he didn't leave now he would never find the courage to walk away again. As much as it killed him to leave he knew that Rory was right, there would be no getting through to Lorelai right now. Any further prying would only make things worse. He would give her the space she needed as long as she found her way back to him again…

Rory watched him pull out of the driveway before she turned and gave Paul Anka a reassuring pat. Then together, they walked up the porch steps and back into the house. It was eerily quiet inside, taking a moment to gather her own thoughts she walked up the stairs and peeked into the bedroom but wasn't surprised to see that Lorelai wasn't in bed. She looked over at the bathroom door and saw that it was shut; she walked over to it and leaned her ear against it to listen.

When she heard sobs coming from the other sighed she closed her eyes and sighed, "Mom…Luke went back to his apartment. Can you let me in?" Rory waited a few moments but when there was no response she sighed and continued. "I'm going to go downstairs and make some coffee…I'll be down there when you are ready to come out. I understand that you are upset but I do hope you will talk to me…take your time though. I'm not going anywhere…"

Nothing but silence followed her as she walked out of the room with Paul Anka behind her. She padded down the stairs of her childhood home and tried to think about how her mother must be feeling. As she pulled out the coffee pot she wished she could think of something to say that would reassure her mother that she wasn't a horrible person. But she knew once someone gets that trapped in their own thoughts its hard to break through the fear…the only thing you could do was wait…

* * *

Luke pulled up in the alley behind the Diner, Ceaser and Lane were working today but he didn't feel like seeing anyone. He figured people would have a lot of questions about the trial and he didn't have the strength to talk about it. His own mind was reeling and it was taking all of his will power to not run back to Lorelai's and break down the door to force her to talk to him. He knew it wouldn't do any good but the idea of letting her go again was too painful to even think about…

He walked up to the apartment and gave himself a few minutes to gather his thoughts. Then he found his fishing supplies and quickly shuffled out of the apartment and out the back door. He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts he didn't notice his sister calling out to him as he jumped in the truck and took off. He drove in silence to his favorite fishing spot that he often visited with his father as a child. He got out, walked up to the dock and plopped down and began to prepare to cast a line.

As he stared out at the water he thought back to what had happened yesterday, the lawyer had done a pretty good job of making him look bad too. He had felt so ashamed when they brought up his fights with Christopher. He had been embarrassed and unable to look anyone in the eye; he didn't feel any better than Christopher in that moment even though he knew it was a different situation. But knowing how bad he felt, he could only imagine what Lorelai was feeling.

He couldn't blame her for pushing him away no matter how much it hurt. He wasn't exactly the type to pour their heart and soul out to someone and he knew it was much easier to keep it bottled up and push people away then to deal with it. He would be a hypocrite if he pushed her to talk to him when he himself had hid so much from her in the past. It didn't make it any easier of course…

For years, the mere idea of Lorelai being in pain had cut him to the core. But ever since they had gotten together, whenever he saw her in pain it felt like it actually might be the death of him. Especially now after everything they had been through, he couldn't b ear to see her like that. He wished there was something he could say to make her realize how amazing she was, to make her see that for all those years that they were friends he didn't care if he got nothing in return. He knew that if they had never gotten together he would still be beside her pouring her coffee and fixing her porch rails, making her burgers and listening to her problems because taking care of her made him happy…

But how could he make her understand all of that? How could you get through to someone who had just had all their mistakes displayed for the world to see? He remembered how ashamed he had felt when he found out about April and how he wanted to hide from the world. This was just like that only on a much bigger and more public scale…

But the wedding was just three weeks away…he would never be able to handle it if she called it off this time around. He knew he would never survive losing her again…

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard footsteps on the dock. Hopeful that it was Lorelai coming to see him even though he knew it was much to soon he glanced behind him and sighed when he saw his sister.

"Hey Big Brother…" Liz whispered as she sat beside him on the dock, letting her feet dangle over the edge. "I saw you back at the Diner…I was coming to check on you but you either ignored me or didn't hear me call your name. You looked pretty intense…or at least more intense than usual…"

He didn't look at her, only stared back out at the water. "Sorry…"

Liz watched him for a moment, trying to get a read on his expression, "I didn't hear from you yesterday after the trial…did it not go well? I didn't want to pry but I've been worried…"

He shrugged, "He got 18 months…then probation and anger management. The restraining order is good for a few years…"

Liz raised an eyebrow, "But…"

Sighing again, he pulled at the fishing rod and rested it on the dock and then glanced down at his hands. "But Christopher's lawyer did a pretty damn good job at crucifying Lorelai's character up there on the stand. And now she is convinced she is a monster and that we shouldn't be together…"

"Oh Luke…" Liz said reaching out to squeeze his shoulder. "She's just upset. She doesn't mean that…you know that. She loves you, she's just scared."

He pursed his lips and nodded once, "The thing is I can't afford to lose her again Liz. I can't…I won't survive it this time. You saw how I was before…but this would be ten times worse because I don't think there would be another chance after this. This is it for us…it's either all or nothing."

"You hate ultimatums…" Liz said nudging him.

He glanced over at her, "I know. But it's the truth…we can't keep doing this. We either have to be together or break ties forever and I can't even imagine that…"

Liz looked out at the water, "Sometimes I can relate to Lorelai about things…especially when it comes to past relationship disasters and the whole single parenting thing. It's not easy Luke…I made many, many mistakes. I'm not half the mother she has been to Rory…but I know how terrifying it is to be faced with those mistakes. You feel like complete shit…you feel like the biggest failure in the world. And sometimes its so overwhelming you just pull away from everything and everyone out of fear…I mean when I sent Jess to you I was so ashamed." She said looking back over at him. "I felt like I failed my kid…I failed myself. I failed you…I wanted to die Luke…"

"I can understand that…I was ashamed when I found out about April. I know it wasn't really my fault but I felt horrible that I wasn't there for her for all those years." He whispered.

"And you pushed Lorelai away…" Liz whispered, "Just like she is pushing you away right now…"

He nodded once. "Yeah…I guess I did."

"Look Big Brother…" She said as she turned towards him and took his hand, "I've had my fair share of failed relationships. I've seen ex's get arrested and all that but the hardest times were always when it was involved with Jimmy…he was my kids father and I felt like I should have prevented Jimmy's mistakes to protect my kid."

"But that doesn't make sense…Jimmy made his choices alone. You had no control over them." He said shaking his head.

Liz nodded, "Right. Just like Anna made the choice not to tell you about April…but yet you felt ashamed with yourself and not Anna. You felt like you should have just known right?"

Luke thought about her words for a moment and then nodded, "I guess…"

"A lot of this guilt and shame that Lorelai is feeling has more to do with Rory than anything else. I bet she feels like she has taken Rory's father away from her. No matter how complicated Rory's relationship with her father may have been I'm sure she always wanted them to have a good relationship. Especially since Lorelai didn't have a good relationship with her own parents growing up…she feels like it's important for Rory to feel connected to both of her parents. She feels like because she was still in love with you and she got with Chris she drove him to do this and therefore took him away from Rory…that's a lot to handle. So now she's naturally thinking about all the choices she has made in her life and how they have effected not only her but Rory as well and that's a lot." Liz said shrugging. "I can't imagine what she must be feeling right now…she's had so much going on this last year and not a whole lot of time to process it all. She never got to process the break up with you before because she jumped right into a relationship with Christopher…and then the assault happened and then you were there again…it's been a rollercoaster. She needs to process something's before she can move on…"

Luke stared at her for a moment, "When did you get so wise?"

"I've always been wise…" Liz said with a smirk and a shrug. "I'm just a bit of a flake so people don't pay close enough attention…"

"You aren't a flake…" Luke whispered to her. "Eccentric maybe but not a flake. And your eccentricity is what makes you special."

"Okay, see; I came here to make you feel better and yet you are now comforting me." She rolled her eyes, "So typical of you…"

"Yeah well…" He shrugged, "I like fixing people…it's a hell of a lot easier than fixing my own damn problems."

"I know…" Liz whispered as she reached over to squeeze his hands, "You're like Dad in that way…he always worked so hard to take care of everyone else but he never took the time to take care of himself. That always worried me…even up until he died he was more concerned with us then himself."

Luke looked out at the lake and thought about all those days he had spent with his father here. "I miss him…Mom too…"

Liz sniffled and squeezed his hand again, "I know. Me too…but for me I think its easier because I see you and you are so much like both of them that I still feel like they are here. I wish I could give you that…"

Luke looked over at her, "You do. You remind me a lot of Mom…the way she enjoyed life so fully. That's something I wish I had more…Lorelai has it too and I think that's what drew me too her. You're artistic like Mom and your able to talk about how you feel which I envy sometimes. So you are like Mom…in more ways than you realize."

Liz smiled at him, "There you go again trying to comfort me in your time of need…so much like Dad…"

Luke chuckled, "I do wish they were here right now…maybe they could tell me what to do to make Lorelai feel better."

"Unfortunately I think they would say the same thing as I said…you just have to wait this out. Let her sort it out and when she is ready she will come to you." Liz said with a shrug.

"That's the problem though…I don't want to wait." Luke said with a grunt, "I'm just afraid it will take too long and the day of the wedding will be here and it won't happen again…"

Liz shook her head, "I wouldn't worry about that Luke. Lorelai missed you just as much as you missed her. She's not about to walk away forever…not when she finally has you back in her life. She just needs a little time to think…before you know it she will be calling you…you'll see."

Luke sighed, "I hope so…"

Liz smiled and reached behind him to pick up his fishing rod, "Poor Dad tried so hard to teach me to do this…he didn't have the patience for me though."

"That's because you had the shortest attention span ever. You would get distracted by something in the sky and drop the pole." He said with a chuckle as he watched her.

"Well its like you said…I enjoy life! Everything is amazing to me." She said staring at the pole "Lets see if you can show me what to do…"

Luke sighed and stood up, Liz quickly followed suit. "Okay…put your arms like this…" He said showing her the motions, "Then pull the pole back and release…"

Liz did as she was told and yelped happily, "Hey! Look at that! I did it!" She looked up at the sky, "You see that one Dad!?"

Luke smiled, "He did…"

Liz smiled at him, "I know…"

Luke nodded and then looked out at the lake, "Thanks…for coming to talk to me."

Liz looked back at the lake and nodded her head in understanding, "What are little sisters for?"

Luke smirked and shoved his hands in his pockets and enjoyed the quietness of the lake and the feeling of his sister beside him. It felt good to know he wasn't alone…to know that she wasn't going to leave him. He just hoped that Liz was right and that Lorelai would reach out to him soon…he hated the idea of her suffering alone and more than that he hated the idea of losing her again…

* * *

Back at the house, Rory waited another hour before walking back upstairs to try and talk to her Mom again. This time she came with a steaming cup of coffee in hopes of bribing her Mom to come out. She knocked and called her name but still heard no response, after a few minutes she walked over to her mother's dresser and looked for a bobby pin.

After successfully finding one, she expertly picked the lock and pushed open the door and sighed when she saw her Mother fast asleep with her head against the bathtub. Even with her eyes closed, it was clear she had been crying due to the puffiness above and below her eyes. There were still tear marks wet on her cheeks as well.

Picking up the coffee mug, Rory walked into the bathroom and sat down beside her as she held the mug under Lorelai's nose. "Wakey wakey…"

Lorelai's eyes fluttered open and fell on the mug in front of her, "Rory?" She asked in a hoarse voice.

"Yep…just you and me here." She said handing her the mug as she wrapped an arm around her Mom. "You okay? You can't be very comfortable right now…"

Lorelai grimaced and stared down at the cup in her hands, "Did he leave?"

Rory didn't need to hear the name to know whom she was referring too, "Yes. You were pretty adamant about him leaving…and even though it killed him he left. I told him you would either call or go see him when you were ready."

Lorelai sighed, "Rory I can't face him…I need to end it. We can't be together. He deserves so much better than me!"

Rory shook her head; "In my opinion and his there is no one better…"

Lorelai rolled her eyes, "Oh really? Were you there yesterday? Did you hear all the terrible things I have done? I mean he didn't even have the complete list so that was just brief summary but it sure was a doosey…"

"Mom…you can't really think you are a bad person…or a bad mother." Rory said staring at her with sad wide eyes, "I mean…you gave me everything I could ever want in my life. And worked your ass off to get it all…I know you had to make a lot of sacrifices to help me get to where I am and you will never know how grateful I am for that…"

"You deserved more…" Lorelai whispered as new batch of tears began to well up in her eyes, "God you deserved so much more Rory…"

"Mom…" She whispered pulling her closer "Is this about how Dad wasn't around?"

Lorelai shrugged, "Maybe if I had agreed to marry him when I got pregnant things would have been easier for you…"

Rory stared at her in shock, "Or maybe we both would have been miserable. Especially you. Come on Mom…you can't believe that that would have made things better. You guys weren't really in love...being married at such a young age never would have worked out. If anything it would have exposed me to a lot of fighting which would have really screwed me up. You made the right choice when you said no to marrying him…"

Turning her head to look at her, Lorelai swallowed hard, "But maybe your Dad felt like he couldn't see you because I said no. Maybe he felt like he had to stay away because of me…maybe you could have had a better relationship with him."

Rory shook her head, "Dad knew where we were Mom. He could have called more…visited more…not made so many promises he couldn't keep. Those were his choices not yours."

"But…" Lorelai sniffled and shifted in her spot as she set the mug down, "Now your Dad is going to jail…I know you are older but God I can't imagine what that feels like for you and I feel responsible for it."

"How many times do we all have to tell you that this isn't your fault? Dad knew what he was getting into when he started a relationship with you again. He knew how you felt about Luke…he was trying to force you to feel something you didn't Mom. And when it didn't go his way he did something that is unforgivable." Rory said with a shake of her head, "I don't blame you for this…no one does. And no it wasn't easy to watch them take Dad away but it was even harder to see you that night with bruises on your face…nothing will hurt as much as that did."

"Rory…" Lorelai said in a chocked voice, "God I love you so much kid…"

Rory smiled weakly at her, "And I love you too Mom…more than I could ever express to you. I am the luckiest girl in the world to have you as a Mom…and there have been times when I have forgotten that and I hate myself for that. But…I love you too much to let you self-destruct this way. I love you too much to push Luke away again…He loves you Mom. And I know you love him…don't ruin a good thing because of your fear…"

"I love him…I do. So much." She said wiping her tears away, "I just don't see what he sees in me…it doesn't make any sense!"

"He thinks you are funny, and intelligent, a hard worker and whether you believe so or not you're a good person. An even better friend and an amazing mother. And I know for a fact that he thinks you are the most beautiful woman in the world…" She tried to smile, "I'm sure there are a lot of other things he sees in you but that's something you'd have to discuss with him. I'm just listing off the things that pretty much everyone sees."

Lorelai sniffled, "Sometimes I look at him and I think God…how did I get him? How was I that lucky that he chose me? It's just hard sometimes…"

"I know…" Rory said rubbing her shoulders, "I think everyone thinks that sometimes when they find the person they love. And it must be even harder when you have someone pointing out every little flaw you have…no one expected you to be able to handle all this on your own Mom…"

"Yeah well…I don't like asking for help." Lorelai said sighing, "I thought I could handle it…I thought I was past it and past all the crap with Luke."

"You never had any time to process it really…not that I think marrying Luke is wrong but there has been a lot going on. I can imagine that your brain and your heart needed time to get on the same page about things." Rory said with a shrug.

Lorelai smiled, "I see all that Yale education paid off…you're so wise. Did you minor in psychology?"

Rory laughed, it was typical of her mother to crack a joke in her time of need. "No…all the wisdom I have gained over the years has come from my amazing mother…"

Lorelai smiled at her, "Hon…"

"Don't you for one second think you are or were a bad mother. I will allow you to feel sad and hurt about Dad and even Luke but I will not allow you to ever think you are a bad mother. Okay?" Rory said leaning her head against hers.

Lorelai stared at her daughter and let her words wash over her. She was reminded of a time not to long ago when Luke tried to assure her that she was not a bad mother when Rory and her were not talking. Sometimes when you are feeling so much pain, no amount of reassurance can get you to see the truth.

But as she sat there with her daughter, she realized that this pain she felt now would be nothing compared to what it would be like to lose Luke again. No matter scared or angry she might be at the moment she couldn't let Luke slip away again. She would never survive it this time around…she knew that was for sure. She just hoped she could get her heart and head on the same page before it was too late…

* * *

After fishing for a few hours, Liz had convinced Luke to go get lunch at Maisey and Bud's. Luckily, neither Bud nor Maisey asked any questions about Lorelai, which was good because he didn't have the strength to talk about it. Although he had a feeling that when he had gone to the bathroom when they first got there, Liz had filled them in on the details and told them not to push him. Even though he didn't like the idea of them all talking behind his back, he appreciated all of their support; especially his sisters.

After lunch they had gone back to Liz's and Luke enjoyed playing with Doula. Her innocent, smiling face seemed to help wash away his fears at least for a little while…Liz had commented on how natural he looked with her daughter. He tried to ignore the ache in his chest when he thought he might be losing his last chance to have this with Lorelai.

By the time that the sun was setting, TJ had come home and despite Liz's please to stay for dinner he needed to excuse himself. After a few hugs and trying to reassure his sister he would be okay he went out to his truck and began to head towards the Diner. He hadn't heard from Lorelai or Rory all day and it took all his strength not to head towards their house…

When he pulled in back of the Diner he sat in the truck for a few moments unable to get himself to get out of the truck. With a sigh, he started the truck again and backed out of his spot and headed towards the lake and the soon to be finished house he hoped to one day share with Lorelai. The workers were gone for the day so he had the place to himself as he pulled himself from the truck. He grabbed his tool box from the back of the truck bed and walked in the space that would soon have their front door…

He glanced around at the progress before taking the steps upstairs towards the bedroom. Lorelai hadn't been to the house in awhile because she was to busy with work and preparing for the trial. That gave him time to work on the four-poster bed he was building for their room without her prying eyes. He was hoping to surprise her with it on the night of their wedding but after what had happened today he worried that would never happen…

Trying to erase those worries he flipped on the radio in the corner and got to work on the carvings on the headboard. He made sure to place his phone nearby just incase either one of the Gilmore girls finally called…

* * *

After dinner, Lorelai took a long, hot bath and tried to calm her worrying mind. Her daughter had spent most of the day by her side trying to keep her laughing and doing her best to erase the tears when they showed back up. She knew deep in her heart pushing away Luke wasn't going to do either of them any good. She just hated the idea of making any more mistakes…

But as she pulled herself out of the tub and went to dry off she realized pushing him away would be the biggest mistake of all. She thought she was protecting him from her but the reality was that pushing him away would do more damage to him than keeping him as close as possible. With a sigh, she ran a brush through her damp curls and threw it up in a messy bun before slipping into some comfortable clothes.

As she walked downstairs, she saw Rory curled up with Paul Anka on the couch reading and she smiled to herself. "You look better…" Rory whispered, "Did the bath help?"

"It always does…" Lorelai whispered as she reached the landing.

Rory watched her for a moment before smiling, "Going to see Luke?"

Lorelai bit her lip nervously as she crossed her arms over her chest, "I don't really have any other choice do I? Being without him isn't an option…"

Rory smiled and closed her book before she stood up and walked over to her, "I'm glad you have finally realized that…"

Lorelai took a deep breath and then pulled her daughter in for a tight hug, "Thank you kid…for everything."

Rory held her back and tried to hold in her own tears, "Anytime Mom. I'll always be here…" She pulled back and walked over to the couch, "I won't wait up…"

Lorelai smiled and quickly grabbed her keys before jumping into the jeep and driving towards the Diner. She saw Ceaser serving a few customers inside as she pulled around back. She frowned when she didn't see his truck but she decided to try the apartment anyway. When she found it empty, she began to walk back down the back stairs when she ran into Liz who was carrying a plate of food in her hands.

"Liz…" Lorelai whispered as she came to a sudden stop, "He's uh…he's not up there."

Liz nodded, "I figured as much…but I thought I'd drop this off to make sure he had something to eat. I'm not even sure he will eat it but I figured it was worth a try…didn't want him to skip dinner."

Lorelai stared at him for a moment, "Um…have you seen him today?"

Liz smiled sadly at her, "I did. We spent most of the day together actually…he just left my house about an hour ago."

Lorelai's face reddened and she looked down slowly, "So you know about-"

Liz sighed and put the plate down on the bottom step before reaching for Lorelai's hand, "You don't have to say anything Lorelai…I understand what you were feeling."

Biting her lip nervously, Lorelai lifted her head slowly, "You do?"

Liz smiled, "It's the whole single mother thing…you worry that every decision you made has totally screwed up your kid forever. But I have to tell you…Rory's one hell of a kid! You have nothing to worry about…you clearly did an amazing job."

Lorelai raised her eyebrow and clucked her tongue, "Well…I had a lot of help from your brother."

"Well so did I when it came to Jess…" Liz said shrugging, "And I've learned that it's not bad to ask for help sometimes…but I know how hard it can be."

Lorelai stared at Luke's sister for a moment and took a deep breath, "I want you to know that I love your brother. That's never been the problem…in fact sometimes I think I love him too much and that's the problem. I never, ever want to cause him any pain its just sometimes I get so wrapped up in my head that I can't see what's right in front of me. I hope…" She bowed her head and sighed, "I really hope you don't hate me…"

Liz reached for her arm and squeezed it gently, "I don't hate you Lorelai…not even a little bit. I admire you for how strong you always are. You put everyone else first just like my brother does and while that's great it can also make it hard to deal with your own problems. Everything you've been through lately has to be incredibly overwhelming…I don't blame you for breaking down."

Lorelai nodded, "I need to fix this…"

"And you will…" Liz said leaning down to pick up the plate again, "Take this and go see him…"

"But I don't know where he is…" Lorelai said shaking her head.

Liz smiled and stepped back, "If you think hard enough I bet you'll figure it out…"

Lorelai watched her step back and walk towards the exit, she glanced down at the plate in her hands and then looked up quickly. "Hey Liz!" She watched her turn quickly before she smiled, "You did a hell of a job with Jess too…whether you realize it or not he's a great kid. Luke may have helped but you played a part in that too."

Liz smiled sheepishly and nodded her head in thanks before walking away and letting the door close behind her. Lorelai stood at the bottom of the stairs for a few moments trying to get her bearings before she realized where Luke had to be. Without hesitating, she walked out to the jeep, placed the food on the passenger seat and then drove off towards the lake…

When she pulled up she let out a sigh of relief when she saw Luke's truck. It had been awhile since she had checked on the progress of the house and she was amazed at how far along it had come. Grabbing the plate of food, she walked up what would be the front walk way and up the steps of the porch. She stepped through the hole in the front and glanced around before following the sounds of the music coming from upstairs.

When she walked into the bedroom, her heart stopped at what she saw in front of her. The music played softly as the light glow of the two lanterns on the floor shown on the beautiful four-poster bed in front of her. Luke was nowhere to be seen but she didn't need to see him working on it to know that he had built this for her. For them…

She bent down and placed the plate of food to the left of the door and walked over to the bed and ran her hands over the smooth wood of one of the arms. The tears welled up in her eyes at the beauty and she was so consumed in her own thoughts she didn't hear the footsteps of Luke's work boots against the floor. He stopped in his tracks when he saw her and watched her admire his hard work. He had hoped to surprise her with this after the wedding but seeing her stand there, he realized there was no better time than now for her to see it.

He watched her walk towards the headboard and trace her finger through one of the large L's that was etched in the wood. "I hope you don't think it's too cheesy to have that there…" He mumbled nervously.

Lorelai's head snapped back towards him and she smiled through her tears, "Oh Luke…it's so beautiful."

He smiled sheepishly and stepped further into the room, bending down he discarded the tools he had gone to get while she had entered the house. "I uh…I debated putting the L's on there but…" He shrugged, "I don't know it seemed like the right thing to do…but I can change it if you want. Start a new one…"

She shook her head and sniffled as she wiped her tears away with the sleeves of her sweatshirt. "Oh no…don't you dare change it. It's absolutely perfect…I can't believe you made this…"

He smiled sadly at her, "I told you I'd make one for us…"

She let out a shaky breath and looked back at the half finished piece before she walked over to him. He watched her nervously as she studied his face before stepping on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck. He didn't say a word as she buried her face in the crook of his neck and he wrapped his own arms around her waist.

"I'm so sorry…" She croaked against his collar bone, "I'm so, so sorry Luke…"

He breathed her in and held her closer, "It's okay…it's okay…you don't have to apologize. I get it…"

She clung to his shirt and placed sweet kisses against the stubble on his chin. "Everything just hit me all at once and I felt so overwhelmed and unsure…but I wasn't unsure about you it was about me. And I'm sorry…God I'm sorry. I was so mean…I never want to push you away. Never…"

He felt her tears run down his neck and his heart ached as he pulled her away to look her in the eye. "Lorelai…"

"You and Rory are the two best things that have ever happened to me. And sometimes I don't know what I did to deserve you…and hearing all those things yesterday brought up all these old fears. I was afraid that I failed you both…that I would always fail you…" She said shaking her head, she couldn't meet his eyes and only stared down at her hands clutching hopelessly at the collar of his shirt.

"You have never failed me and you have never failed Rory…you never will." He said shaking his head.

She let her eyes flutter up towards him for a moment, "I just…I never knew that you could love someone so much until I met you two. I mean…" She shrugged, "I know my parents love me but growing up we never said that we loved each other. And I think that made me nervous to love anyone else…and so its easier to push you away now than to feel the pain again later."

Luke sighed and reached up to brush her tears away with his thumbs, "Lorelai, things aren't always going to be perfect. Life is going to happen…and things will get hard. But we can't push each other away every time we get afraid…I know that now. And I need you to know it too because I can't stand the idea of losing you again. I wouldn't survive it this time around…"

She shook her head, "I wouldn't survive it either…" She whispered sadly, "God it almost killed me last time…I know it would do me in now."

He nodded slowly and cradled her face gently, "So…does this mean you aren't calling off the wedding?"

She let out a breath and leaned in against him again and rubbed her nose against the soft flannel he wore. "No. God no…not this time."

He let out a sigh of relief and held her close again. "Good…"

"I'm sorry I let you doubt how I felt…" She whispered, "I know how scary that feels…"

He nodded slowly, "It's okay…you've had a hell of a lot going on lately. I guess it was crazy of us to think you could just move on so quickly."

"Rory said my head and my heart had to get on the same page…" Lorelai said sniffling as she held him close.

"And have they?" He asked softly as he rubbed circles against her back.

She smiled against his chest and nodded, "Yes…finally."

He smiled happily and kissed the side of her face, "I'm glad to hear it…"

Sighing again, Lorelai pulled away and wiped at her face. "God I must look like a wreck…"

He shook his head and smiled at her before whispering honestly, "You look beautiful. You always do…"

She smiled up at him before turning back towards the bed. "I really can't believe you did all of this…"

He watched her walk back towards the bed and run her hands against the smooth wood. "It's not done yet…but it's getting there."

"How did I not realize you were doing this?" She asked looking back at him "I mean aside from work we have pretty much been together 24/7!"

He shrugged, "I would run over here when the Diner was quiet or when you were visiting with Sookie and Rory. Tom was pretty good about letting me work without disturbing me."

"You're an amazing man…" She whispered as she stood behind the headboard smiling at him. "But I really wish there was a mattress on here right now…"

His face flushed and he cleared his throat, "Why?"

"Because I need you…" She whispered in a soft, husky voice. "I need to feel you…"

Luke stared at her there standing behind their unfinished bed in there soon to be bedroom. The moon shone through the windows and reflected against her pale skin and she took his breath away. He said a silent prayer to whoever was above them that she had come back to him, and then he lifted his finger to tell her he would be right back.

A few moments later he returned with a large blanket and he placed it down on the ground. "We may be a little sore in the morning…"

She smiled through her tears and shook her head, "I don't care…"

He glanced back over at her and then reached his hand out to her, "Come here…"

Lorelai took a few shaky steps towards him and relaxed when she felt his hands cup her face. She knew that he wouldn't let her fall again; she was safe, completely safe when she was with him.

He caressed her cheek softly before whispering to her, "I love you…"

Her eyes fluttered closed for a moment as a tear escaped, "I love you too…so much."

Gently pulling her forward he kissed her and made sure to pour ever ounce of passion he had within him into that kiss. He felt her melt against him as he body finally relaxed into his embrace. As carefully as he could be guided them to a kneeling position on the floor and then eased her back against the blanket.

As he held himself above her he made sure to stare into her eyes to let her know just how much he meant to him. Unlike this morning, he saw hope and love in her eyes instead of fear and sadness. He knew there were still things to discuss but none of that mattered right now…they needed one another. And for right now he knew he could let his actions speak rather than his words…they had a lifetime to talk. Right in this moment they just had to feel one another…

No matter what the future had in store for them, he knew they would face it head on. Together, right where they were supposed to be.

* * *

**So I hope you liked it. It was a bit more angsty than other chapters but I still enjoyed writing it. Hope you liked it, send in those reviews and I will try and update soon! **


	16. IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOTE Please Read!

**Hey guys, so I figured I got a few messages about the last chapter and some confusion so I wanted to clear things up. It got sent out as telling you there was an update with chapter 16, but really it was chapter 15. When I started writing the story I changed the title and "Chapter 2" was an authors note about the change in title. So when I put up the new chapter a few days ago I deleted that old authors note and so I think it screwed some things up. SO if you are looking for the new chapter but can't find it, it is chapter 15! I will just leave this authors note up even though it changes how many chapters are in the story I guess. Okay I hope that wasn't to confusing and helped clear things up. So go read Chapter 15 and review! Thanks!**


	17. Chapter 16

**Hey guys sorry about the long wait, I've been super busy with work and my personal life. But here is the next chapter! Its a little shorter than recent chapters but I still think you will like it. I will try and update again within the next few days! I hope the last authors note cleared up any confusion about the chapters. This is technically chapter 16 so don't get confused again, okay? Thanks! **

* * *

Luke woke up to the sun streaming in through the unfinished walls and windows in his soon to be bedroom. It took him a minute to remember where he was, but he smiled despite the creaks in his bones when he saw the mass of curly black hair beside him. Rolling over he wrapped his arm around Lorelai's middle and nuzzled her hair, breathing in the familiar scent of her shampoo. He brushed his lips against the crown of her head and reminded himself just how lucky he was to have her.

She stirred for a moment and he thought she had woken up, but he chuckled to himself when he heard her mumble something that sounded a lot like coffee before rolling onto her stomach and beginning to sleep again. He smiled, kissed the back of her head once and then quietly pulled himself up off the floor. He tiptoed around the room to gather his clothes and then slipped back downstairs and out the hole that would be the front door.

It was only around 5 in the morning when he checked his watch, he had plenty of time to run to the Diner and get her breakfast before the workers would be coming to the house. He slipped in the back, gathered some bagels for them, tea for himself and coffee for Lorelai and then slipped back out of the Diner. He was glad he had asked Lane to open today, he wanted some more time alone with Lorelai.

He quietly snuck back into the unfinished house and found his sleeping fiancé in the same spot he had left her in. He pulled over a box from the corner of the room and placed it near her sleeping form and put the bagels and his tea on it. Then he walked over to her, knelt down next to Lorelai and held the cup of coffee out in front of her with the lid off.

"Mmmm…" She mumbled sleepily. "Luke?" He watched her turn her head push her hair out of her face and blink up at him a few times. "Angel…"

He laughed, "I knew this would wake you up…"

"You should see yourself right now…the sun is streaming in through the window behind you and making you and that glorious cup of coffee glow. Truly the vision of an angel." She said pulling herself up with the sheet around her a she yawned. "My angel…"

He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her softly, "Good morning…"

When he tried to pull away she only pulled him back. "I love you…" She whispered against his lips, "I love you so much."

He smiled and pulled away, "I love you too…"

Her smile faltered and she shrugged sadly, "I just wanted to make sure you knew that after my minor freak out yesterday…"

"Hey…we talked about everything. It's okay. We're okay…" He whispered leaning up to rub her shoulders to help ease her worries.

"I know…I just still feel bad that I pushed you away." She said with a heavy sigh. "I don't' ever want to make you doubt how I feel about you…how much you mean to me."

"I didn't…and I won't." He said leaning forward to kiss her again, "Now come here and have something to eat. We need to clean up and head out soon before the guys get here."

She smiled and watched him begin to pull out the bagels for them, "You mean you don't want the guys to see our little impromptu love nest?"

He groaned, "No. They saw enough of you when you stepped out of the shower when they worked on the old house. They don't need anymore free shows…"

She giggled and plopped down his lap much to his surprise, "You don't want to share me?" She asked as she pulled the coffee from him.

He squeezed her hips gently, "Hell no. No one gets to see the goods but me. Remember?"

She smiled and nuzzled his nose affectionately, "I remember…"

He chuckled as she wiggled around in his lap some more, "You comfy? Because there is a perfectly good spot for you to sit in right on the other side of this box."

She shook her head, "Nope. I'm good. I happen to find this position incredibly comfortable thank you very much!"

He only laughed more and shook his head, "Whatever makes you happy dear…"

She beamed up at him, "You make me happy."

He smiled sweetly back at her, "Good. That's all I ever want to do."

She smiled and turned back to the bagels that were sitting on the box beside her, "When did you run out and get these?"

"Just before you woke up…I figured I'd need a bribe to get you to wake up. If I had had time I would have made you some waffles but I didn't want to risk having you wake up without me or Lane seeing me when she came in to open." He said with a shrug, "Hope this is okay."

"It's perfect." She said as she ripped off a piece of a bagel and fed it to him, "Look at us having our first meal together in our new home."

He took a few moments to chew and then swallow before smirking, "And last night we got to christen our bedroom…more than once."

She giggled and took her own bite of bagel, "Mhm…those poor guys will be working in here today not even aware of the fact that very dirty things happened here last night."

"Well we can just keep it as our little secret okay?" He said with a teasing wink.

"Our dirty little secret…" She said leaning in towards him again.

"Careful Lorelai…you're in a very precarious position." He said with a warning tone, "If you keep wiggling I'll be ripping that sheet off you in no time…"

She smiled sexily at him and put her bagel down, "You don't have to rip it off…" She let the white sheet fall around her, exposing herself to him. "You can have me whenever you want me…I'm all yours."

Luke hissed through his teeth as he watched the rising sun shine against her milky skin, "God you are beautiful… "

She smiled and wiggled some more against him, "Think we have some more time before the guys get here? I think we need to practice a little more so this room knows exactly what to expect once we move in."

Luke smiled eagerly at her and lay back and pulled her with him, "Commere crazy lady…"

Giggling, Lorelai beamed down at him as she braced her hands on either side of his head. And as he smiled up at her she couldn't remember ever feeling this happy and complete…

* * *

Later that afternoon, Lorelai was in her office going through the inventory list. It was a little before lunch and she felt her stomach begin to rumble letting her know that she was hungry. She didn't think to much of it since she and Luke had had an early breakfast and their had run out of time to finish eating after their love making had taken up the rest of the morning.

She tried to ignore it as she filled out some more papers but when the grumbling got louder, she knew she at least needed to have a snack. Standing up, she organized her paperwork and then headed into the kitchen where Sookie was prepping for lunch.

"Hey hon." Sookie said smiling up at her, "I didn't see you come in this morning. Everything okay? Yesterday was a hard day…"

"Yeah. I just sort of lost track of time this morning and was in a rush. I didn't get to come in here to say hi." She said with a happy smile on her face.

Sookie stopped chopping and smirked up at her, "You did something dirty this morning."

Lorelai laughed, "Sookie…"

"You did! I can see it on your face! In fact I haven't seen that face in a while…that 'I just got laid so good last night that I could walk on water face'!" Sookie said with a laugh, "I only ever see that face when you are with Luke…"

Lorelai blushed and shrugged, "That's because Luke is the best lover I've ever had…"

Sookie sighed happily, "I am so happy that you two are back together…"

Lorelai glanced up at her and nodded once, swallowing the lump in her throat that always formed when she thought of how she almost lost him forever. "Me too Sooks. Me too…"

Sookie smiled again and then went back to chopping, "So, you want some coffee? There is a new pot over there…" She said pointing her knife towards the far counter.

Lorelai shook her head, "No. I'm actually just super hungry, didn't eat much this morning. I need a snack before I head over to the Diner for lunch." Lorelai glanced around the kitchen trying to decide what to eat.

Sookie nodded, "That's because you were doing dirty, dirty things this morning. No time to eat when you are all wrapped up in hunky Luke Danes!"

"Sookie!" Lorelai said with a gentle laugh as she reached into the fruit bowl and took a green apple from it. "God you're bad…"

"Well I…" Sookie stopped mid sentence when she saw Lorelai bite into the apple. "What are you doing?"

Lorelai chewed the piece in her mouth and swallowed, "Having a snack…"

"Lorelai you're eating an apple…" Sookie said pointing the knife at her. "You never eat apples! You hate them unless they are baked in pies!"

Lorelai stopped and glanced down at the fruit in her hand and gasped, "Oh my God…"

Sookie began to hop up and down, the knife in her hand flailed all around, "Oh my god! Oh my God! Oh my GOD!"

Lorelai quickly put the apple down on the counter and nervously glanced at her friend, "Okay can you put the knife down before one of us gets hurt please?"

Sookie quickly discarded the knife and walked closer to Lorelai, "Honey…do you think you could-"

Lorelai's face reddened, "No. No, there's no way I'm pregnant!"

Sookie shrugged, "You don't know that…I mean you and Luke have been basking in the glow of your reconciliation and the engagement. You said yourself you've been 'together' a lot lately…"

Lorelai swallowed nervously, "Yeah but…still. I don't know…"

"Well have you been using protection? I know Christopher wanted you to go off the pill while you were together, did you do that?" Sookie asked.

Lorelai grimaced, "Oh my God…I honestly have completely forget about it lately. With everything going on my brain has been so rattled I never even thought about it once. And…" She sighed, "We haven't always been careful…"

"Lorelai…" Sookie said reaching for her hand, "I mean…we don't know for sure if you are. But you did say that when you were pregnant with Rory you did crave apples a lot. And if you were pregnant with Luke's baby it would probably be a freak and crave healthy foods. But I mean…if you are pregnant…" She shrugged, "That wouldn't be such a bad thing would it?"

Licking her lips, Lorelai fell down into the stool beside her. "No…not really. But...there's just been so much going on and everything has happened so fast. Luke and I do want kids but maybe this is too soon. We haven't gotten married yet or finished building the house. I don't know if we are ready for a baby…"

"Well luckily it takes more than a few weeks to grow a baby so you do have some time still." Sookie said with a giggle.

Lorelai smiled weakly, "Sookie…"

"Honey…we don't even know if you are yet. Lets calm down, I didn't mean to freak you out. But I do know how much you want to have another kid…especially with Luke." Sookie said with a shrug, "Right?"

"I do want another kid…especially with Luke. But…what if he isn't ready? What if he thinks it's to soon? What if he wants to you know…be married for awhile before we start a family?" Lorelai asked as her brain continue to run wild.

"Slow down…" Sookie said as she squeezed her hand, "You need to take a test first before we start thinking about this. Why don't we run to the store and do it together?"

Lorelai grimaced, "I think this is something I should do with Luke…"

Sookie nodded, "Okay. Well you know I'm here…you can call me as soon as you find out. And no matter what happens I'm going to support you."

Lorelai smiled, "Thanks Sooks…"

"But I don't think you have much to worry about. If you are pregnant I think Luke is going to be really happy…" Sookie said with a smile.

Lorelai took a deep breath, "I hope so…" She paused, "Or he could be disappointed if I'm not pregnant. Oh God what if I can't get pregnant?"

"Okay…" Sookie said walking up behind her, "Come on…you need to go see Luke now. You're going to drive yourself crazy. Remember…everything is going to be fine either way…Luke loves you and you love him."

Lorelai turned back towards the table and grabbed the apple, "I forgot how damn stressful this is!"

Sookie laughed, "And this is only the beginning…"

Lorelai sighed and went out to finish up some work before heading to Luke's. She left a few minutes early and drove to the pharmacy to pick up a pregnancy test. Then she slipped it into her purse and parked outside the Diner. When she walked in she smiled and waved slowly at him, he waved back but noticed the hesitant look on her face.

"Hey…" He whispered as he stepped over to her, "You okay? You look scared…"

She licked her lips, "Can you get away for a few minutes? I need to talk to you upstairs…"

Luke watched her for a moment before nodding slowly, "Okay…yeah. I'll meet you upstairs in a few minutes."

Lorelai nodded and kissed his cheek before walking upstairs and straight into the bathroom. She knew she probably should have waited for Luke but the suspense was literally killing her. She took out three different tests and read the instructions before preparing to take them. Then she placed them on the sink and washed her hands just as she heard Luke walk into the apartment.

"So…what's going on?" Luke whispered as he walked closer to her.

Lorelai took his hand and led him towards the couch, "Um…how would you feel about starting a family sooner rather than later?"

Luke's eyes widened, "What?"

Lorelai sighed, "I was really hungry and I went in to have a snack in the kitchen at work and I reached for an apple…"

Luke squinted at her, "An apple? Okay…well how does that have anything to do with having a family?"

"When I was pregnant with Rory I craved apples all the time. So Sookie pointed that out and then I started thinking…and I realized we haven't been using protection and I haven't been taking my pill." She tried to read Luke's expression but he seemed to be trying to understand what she was saying and his face looked blank. "I'm sorry…I should have been more careful. But with everything going on it was honestly the last thing on my mind…"

Luke reached up to adjust his cap, "So…wait…do you know for sure if you are pregnant? Or are you just guessing right now?"

"I just took three tests…" She glanced at the clock on the wall, "In about ten minutes we will know for sure…"

"Wow…" Luke whispered looking around his apartment. "I mean…" He huffed softly, "Wow…" He said again.

Lorelai felt the tears burning in her eyes, "God Luke I'm so sorry…I'm so sorry! I keep screwing things up! I can't-"

He quickly turned his head to look at her, "What are you apologizing for?"

She licked her lips nervously as a few tears fell from eyes, "I just…you're not ready. Right? You don't want this and-"

Luke shook his head and scooted closer to her, "Whoa. No…no wait a second. I was just shocked…but its not that I don't want this. I do want this…I want to have a family with you. It doesn't matter if it's now or in a year from now…it just surprised me. That's all…"

"So…if I am pregnant you won't be mad at me?" Lorelai whispered nervously.

Luke smiled sadly at her, "Oh Lorelai…no. Of course I won't be mad at you." He said as he leaned forward to kiss her gently. "Not at all…"

She breathed a sigh of relief and leaned further into him, "Oh Luke…"

He kissed the side of her face and rubbed her back gently, "It's okay…I've got you."

Lorelai held him close and nuzzled his neck gently, "I just got so scared…last time I went through this it was so scary and Christopher and I didn't know what to do. I was so alone and-"

"Well you aren't alone anymore…" Luke whispered as he gave her a squeeze, "Whether you are pregnant or you aren't…we're in this together. You're not a sixteen year old kid anymore having to go through this by yourself."

She sighed against him and traced the lines on his flannel shirt, "I'm so thankful that I have you Luke…"

He smiled and kissed the top of her curly head, "Well I'm thankful to have you too…"

She sighed and pulled back, leaning against the couch so she could stare at him. "I took the pregnancy test at school…" She laughed, "And then when it came back positive I ditched for the rest of the day and literally just walked around for hours."

"You must have been scared…" Luke whispered reaching up to push some hair out of her face.

She smiled sadly, "I thought my parents were going to kill me…" She paused and looked down at her hands, "I love Rory with all my heart but sometimes I do wonder what my life would have been like if I never got pregnant. But to be honest I don't think it would have been a very good life…"

"What do you mean?" He asked curiously, she never really talked about that part of her life and he was interested to see what she had gone through.

Lorelai shrugged, "I don't know…I mean even though I was always rebellious I sometimes think that without Rory I would have just followed my parents path for me. Maybe I'd me some bitter housewife with a drinking problem living in some huge house in Hartford while my husband pretends to play golf but really is banging his twenty-two year old secretary…"

Luke chuckled, "You've always had a very vivid imagination…"

She smiled up at him, "Yeah well…that's just what I picture when I think of that world. I mean don't get me wrong…" She laughed, "I was terrified when I looked down at that test and saw that it was positive. I didn't know what the hell I was going to do but," She smiled and shrugged, "Once I held Rory in my arms I knew she was my way out…I knew that I didn't' need my parents or anyone else as long as I had her. She saved me…"

Luke smiled at her, "You're an amazing mother Lorelai…Rory is so lucky to have you as a mother. And if you are pregnant now…our future kid is going to be just as lucky."

Lorelai smiled and leaned forward to kiss him, "Actually they will be even luckier because they get you as a Dad too."

Luke smiled at her as she pulled away, "You think I'll be good at it?"

"Of course! You are so great with Rory and April, how could you not be with another kid?" She asked tilting her head to look up at him.

He sighed and glanced down at his hands feeling embarrassed, "I never had to deal with either of them when they were babies. I'm not good with babies…they make a lot of noise and they have the jam hands and all that…I wouldn't know what do with it."

Lorelai giggled, "Aw hon…I didn't know what the hell I was doing when I had Rory. I made a million mistakes, especially in the early years but you learn along the way. I've seen you with Davey and Marth and even little Doula…" She beamed at him, "You look so good holding a baby…and one you have your own baby in your hands you'll figure it out. I know you'll be great…"

Luke looked back up at her, "You really think so?" He asked hopefully.

"I know so…" She said rubbing his leg, "This is your second chance Luke…if we are pregnant then you get to see what its like from the very beginning."

He smiled sadly, "I wish I had had that with April…I still feel guilty."

Lorelai shook her head, "You know it's not your fault that you weren't there. Ann chose not to tell you…you had no way of knowing Luke. You can't beat yourself up for that for the rest of your life. April knows you love her…she knows that you would have been there if you knew about her."

"Yeah…I guess you're right." He whispered shrugging slightly.

They sat quietly for a few minutes thinking about the possibilities of either outcome. If she was pregnant, their family was about to grow a lot sooner than they had expected. They still had time of course to finish the house and they would be married by the time the baby was born. They both wanted this, and they weren't getting any younger.

But on the other hand…if she wasn't pregnant what did that mean since they weren't using protection? Would she not be able to have children? This would give them time to enjoy the beginning of married life for awhile but waiting any longer could be a problem too.

Lorelai bit her lip and leaned against Luke and snuggled into his chest, "Hey Luke?"

"Yeah?" He whispered as he held her close.

"I think I want it to be positive…" She whispered against him as she held him tightly, "I think I want to have a baby…now."

Luke smiled against the side of her head and gave her a gentle squeeze. "Well good…because I think I want it to be positive too."

She pulled away and took a deep breath, "I mean I'm not getting any younger…now would probably be a good time. But…I mean I did panic when Sookie brought it up today. I was so afraid you wouldn't be ready…and maybe we aren't ready. I mean I wasn't ready last time I was pregnant and it turned out okay…"

Luke shrugged, "Well there has been a lot going on lately but I think we are ready Lorelai…just like we said with the engagement…no more waiting."

She nodded once, "Okay…"

Rubbing her shoulders gently he glanced over at the clock, "Lets just see what the tests say okay? Then we can talk more about it…"

Lorelai nodded again and then stood up as she went to walk back towards the bathroom. She stopped outside the door and held onto the doorframe and took a few deep breaths.

"Lorelai?" He whispered as he walked up behind her and placed a hand on her back.

She turned back towards him, "What if I'm not pregnant?"

"Well then we will deal with that too…" He whispered as he smiled encouragingly at her, "No matter what we will deal with it…"

She tried to smile, "Okay…"

"Do you want me to look first?" Luke asked her as he stared down at into her eyes.

She nodded mutely and stepped aside and over towards Luke's bed. She sat down on the edge and watched him walk towards the bathroom; it felt like he was in there for hours before he walked back out with his hands in his pockets.

She took a shaky breath, "Well?"

"A positive sign means pregnant right?" He asked with his head cocked to the side.

Her heart started to pound in her chest and she leaned forward on the bed, 'Yes…"

He took a deep breath and smiled, "Okay…"

She stood up quickly and walked over to him, "Okay? Okay what? Okay I'm pregnant or okay I'm not?"

He smiled and pulled her by her hands towards him and kissed her passionately. "Okay you're pregnant…"

Her eyes widened and then she jumped up and wrapped her arms around his neck tightly. Her loud pitch squeal pierced his ears but at the moment he didn't care. He held her close as she wrapped her legs around his waist.

"We're having a baby!" Lorelai yelled excitedly.

Luke chuckled and leaned her back to look at her, "Yeah…we're having a baby."

She squealed again and quickly grabbed his face in her hands to give him tiny kisses all along his face. "Baby, we're having a baby!"

Luke laughed as she smothered him with her soft lips and he guided them over towards the bed, making sure to place her down gently. "Lorelai…"

Tears sprung from her eyes, her head fell back against the mattress and she gulped quickly before covering her face with her hands. "Oh my God…"

Luke held himself up over her and frowned slightly at the sudden change in her reaction, "Lorelai? Hey…what is it? Why are you crying?"

She felt him pull her hands away from her face and she smiled despite the tears continuing to fall. "Oh Luke…we're going to be a real family." She said in a chocked voice.

His frown quickly turned into a smile as he realized they were tears of happiness and not of sadness. "Oh honey…"

"That's all I've ever wanted…a real family." She hiccupped and put a hand over her mouth as she giggled through the tears. "God I love you so much."

He smiled and used his thumb to brush away her tears, "I love you too…"

She took a few deep breaths before she leaned up to wrap her arms around his neck. "We're having a baby…we're getting married and building a beautiful house and we're having a baby."

He held her close and breathed in the familiar sweet smell of her, "The whole package…" He whispered.

She smiled against the curve of his neck and nodded her head slowly, "The whole package…"

He smiled and pulled away from her again, bracing his hands on either side of her head to hold himself up. "I told you you'd get it someday…"

She beamed up at him as the tears continued to fall, and she leaned a hand up to stroke the stubble on his cheek. "Yeah…you did."

"I was always hoping it would be me who you had it with too…I just never thought I'd be lucky enough though." He said staring down at her with admiration. "But you're really having my baby…"

"According to those three pregnancy tests…yes I am." She said pulling him down to kiss her again. "I'm having your baby."

Saying the words out loud seemed to make the truth sink in deeper for Luke. He pulled away and sat up on the bed as he stared down at her in disbelief. Lorelai watched him for a moment and noticed how his eyes automatically fell on her stomach.

"You okay?" She whispered reaching for his hand to give it an affectionate squeeze.

His eyes darted up to her again and he smiled to reassure her as he nodded once. Then he looked back down at he belly and reached a gentle hand out to push her shirt up. She shivered as his fingers slid against her smooth skin but she smiled when she saw him lean forward and place a soft kiss directly above her bellybutton.

"You're having my baby…" He glanced up at her with a radiant smile and shook his head in disbelief, "You. Lorelai Gilmore. You are having my baby."

She smiled and rested one arm behind her head and reached the other out to him, she ran her hand through his hair and smiled. "Yes. I think we've covered this already…"

Luke chuckled and glanced back down at her stomach in awe, "I just…I can't believe it. I mean…I know we've talked about it. And before I read the test we were discussing it but I don't know…knowing its real is just so amazing."

She watched him continue to stare at her belly and she smiled at him, "Luke?"

He shook his head and ignored her, "You don't know how long I have wanted this…how long I have thought about what it would be like to be with you. To be able to call you my wife…to call you the mother of my children. For years I never thought it would happen…I gave up on that dream."

"Oh Luke…" She whispered swallowing the lump her throat as she felt the tears begin to grow again.

"And then we started dating and I started to let myself dream about it again…and we got so close last time. So damn close…" He felt his words catch in his throat as he leaned forward to kiss her stomach. "But God I lost you…"

Lorelai inhaled sharply when she felt warm tears roll down onto her skin and into her bellybutton. "Shhh…Luke its okay."

He shook his head again and leaned his face against her stomach, "I cant lose you Lorelai. God you mean the world to me…"

"Oh Luke…" She whispered as she sat up and let his head rest in her lap near her belly, "Oh honey…shh…its okay. It's okay…"

Luke was not a man who cried often and he felt embarrassed at showing such emotion but at the moment he felt overwhelmed with happiness, sadness and regret for the time they had lost. "I'm so sorry…"

Lorelai quickly reached down and pulled his face up to look at her, "Hey…baby look at me." He closed his eyes and shook his head again, "No Luke I mean it…look at me."

He sighed and swallowed hard as he opened his eyes to stare at her, "What?"

"We both made mistakes last time. But none of that matters…you are the love of my life and we are getting married…and we're moving into that beautiful house you are building. And in about 8 or 9 months we're bringing home a baby to live there with us. This is it babe…you and me. You are never losing me again…I promise." She whispered.

He nodded slowly, "I was so scared when I felt you slipping away again last night…God I'd die if I lost you again Lorelai."

She felt her heart squeeze in her chest and she leaned forward to kiss away his tears, "I'm sorry…I'm sorry I scared you. But I promise I'm not going anywhere."

Luke smiled and nuzzled the side of her face, "I love you…"

She smiled as she pulled away to look him in the eye, "I love you too Luke…you and this little munchkin of ours." She said as she placed a protective hand over her belly.

Luke looked down at her hands and smiled, "How is it possible to love someone so much you haven't even met yet?"

"It's called being a parent…" Lorelai said as she watched him watch her. "And you are going to be the best father Luke…I'm so lucky to have you beside me."

He smiled and wiped away a tear, "We're you serious before?"

She cocked her head to the side and used her hand to wipe away some of his tears, "Serious about what?"

He placed his hand over hers, "About naming him William if it's a boy…"

The smile on her face grew and she nodded, "Yeah. I was…And if it's a girl we don't have to make her Lorelai…" Luke laughed, "We can came her Wilimena…"

Luke laughed harder and pushed her down on the bed, "My God you really are insane…"

"But I got you to smile didn't I?" She said reaching up to caress his face.

"Yeah…you did." He smiled again, "You always do…"

"Good…" She pulled him down to kiss her gently, "So…you think you can handle the jam hands after all?"

Luke smirked and nodded quickly, "As long as I'm doing it with you...yeah. I can handle it."

"Well good…" Lorelai said, "Because if this kid is anything like me its going to be eating a lot of jam…and chocolate and every other messy disgusting food you can think of and you're going to have to love it no matter what."

Luke groaned, "Oh God help me…"

"Its just all part of the process of picking Lorelai Gilmore to be your partner. You should have picked more wisely if you wanted a healthy eater for a kid." She said with a chuckle.

"Remind me again why I picked you then?" He asked with a sly smirk.

Lorelai gasped and pushed him back against his stomach so he was lying on his back on the mattress. She quickly straddled his hips and bent down to kiss him passionately, letting her tongue trace against his lips slowly and sensually. She let her hands slide up against the hard expanse of his muscular chest and she couldn't help but smirk when she felt his heart racing beneath her fingers.

She nipped playfully at his lips before pulling back and sitting up to stare down at him, "Do you remember now?"

Luke glanced up at her with a stunned expression, then he smiled and let his hands glide up along her thighs and hips. "Vaguely…but I think I might need some more reminders. Think you can help me out with that?"

Lorelai grinned down at him, "How much time do you have?"

Luke reached up and cupped her face, "For you? I have forever…"

Lorelai beamed down at him and fell forward to kiss him again, "Good answer…"

He smiled against her lips and carefully flipped her over again so she was underneath him. He pulled back and stared down into her blue eyes and shook his head in disbelief of just how damn lucky he actually was. She didn't ask him what he was thinking because she didn't have too…she felt just as lucky.

With a content sigh she reached for him again, "Come down here…"

Luke smiled and leaned down again to kiss her and reminded himself to stop thinking about the past. The pain of almost losing her was too much to handle and the more he dwelled on it the more he missed out on the present with her now. They both had a lot to be thankful for…and he had a feeling the next few months as crazy as they may be…would end up being the best months of his life. They were finally getting the family they had both always wanted…the whole package. Together.

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**So...what did you think? Are you happy they are having a baby? I hope so! Let me know and I will try and update as soon as possible! Thanks for the support! **


	18. Chapter 17

**Hey guys! I finally finished the next chapter. I hope you like it! I'm thinking that there will be one more chapter before the wedding after this one. And then I can't decide if I will go past the wedding or not...but we will see. Next week is kind of crazy for me but I will try and update as soon as possible. Thanks! **

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Three days later, Lorelai was sitting in the Diner waiting for Rory to meet here there for dinner. So far the only other person besides Luke and Lorelai who knew about the baby was Sookie. Lorelai felt guilty that Rory wasn't the first person to know but she really wanted this to be something she told her daughter in person. So that Thursday night, Rory was coming to have dinner with Lorelai and Luke and the Diner where they would tell her the good news together.

Lorelai was sitting anxiously, tapping her fingers on the counter. Luke was wiping down the counter beside her and couldn't help but laugh at her nervousness.

"Would you realx? Its not like you are telling her you are dying…she's going to be happy." He said with a chuckle.

Lorelai bit her lip nervously, "I know…but its still a big deal. I just want her to know how much I love her and that even with a new baby she's still my little girl. I don't want her to feel like she's being replaced…"

Luke sighed and put the rag down before leaning over the counter to take her hand in his. "Lorelai we have already talked about this. Rory knows how much we both love her. She can't be replaced and neither can April…they won't feel like that. Our family is just growing…that's all."

Lorelai smiled weakly, "I know…but they are both going so far away. I just want to make sure they never feel like they don't belong."

Luke shook his head, "That will never happen. We won't let it. "

Taking a deep breath, Lorelai lifted her chin and beamed up at him. "I'm really glad I have you to go through all of this with. It's so much nicer to have a partner by my side this time around."

Luke nodded, "I'm glad. And anytime you need to remind you about how crazy your thoughts are…you know where to find me."

Lorelai rolled her eyes at him, "Nice…"

He chuckled and leaned further over to kiss her forehead, "I'm always here for you babe."

Lorelai smiled as he pulled away and went back to work, she continued to tap on the counter still anxious to see Rory. The day before, Luke had accompanied her to the Doctors office where the pregnancy had been confirmed. He said she was about 4 weeks along and the baby would be due around mid march. He had assured Lorelai and Luke that both she and the baby looked healthy and he had little concern about her age.

Lorelai smiled as she thought about how focused Luke had been on everything that the Doctor had been saying. He asked so many questions Lorelai practically had to drag him out of the office. What kind of foods were good for her and the baby? How much sleep should she have? Should she be off her feet as much as possible? Was it safe for her to work so much? Was it safe for her to drive? Should he avoid hugging her so he wouldn't squish the baby? And could he please explain to Lorelai that caffeine was bad for the baby and her?

Luke noticed the small smile on her face and he slid over towards her again, "What are you smiling about?"

Lorelai laughed softly, "I'm just thinking about how adorable you were yesterday at my appointment. Dr. Thompson looked like her head was going to explode with all the questions you asked her."

Luke blushed, "Well this is my first time dealing with this kind of stuff. I just want to make sure I am doing everything I can to make sure you are both healthy and safe."

Lorelai smiled and reached up to caress his face, "I know. And I love you for that."

"Good. So if you love me so much you're going to stop drinking coffee." He said leaning his face down to glare at her.

She huffed and put her arms on the counter, resting her head in her hands she pouted. "Fine…"

He smiled and leaned across the counter again, "Thank you."

"But I hope you know that when I push this baby of yours out I'm going to expect you to pump coffee in through the IV at the hospital!" She said lifting her head quickly.

Luke chuckled, "I wouldn't expect anything less from you."

Lorelai smiled and then jumped when she felt and heard her stomach grumble. "Your baby is very hungry…I wish Rory would hurry up."

Luke looked past her and smiled, "Here she comes…"

Lorelai's face lit up and she turned on the stool and ran towards the door to meet her daughter. "There she is! My beautiful, perfect, adorable daughter!" She exclaimed as she threw her arms around her.

Rory hugged her back and stared at Luke in confusion, "Is she back on the sauce again? I thought I told you to limit her to one bottle a day?"

Luke laughed, "She hasn't had a drop of alcohol. This is just her normal insanity, you must be so busy packing that you've forgotten how crazy your mother is."

Rory smiled, "That must be it!"

"Well then I'm going to have to send you videos every day when you are in New York. Because we will be apart for more than three days at a time so you will need to be reminded often." Lorelai said smoothing her daughters hair back.

"Whatever makes you happy Mom." Rory said as they walked over to the counter, "Did you order yet?" She asked as they sat down at the counter.

Lorelai shook her head, "No. I was waiting for you."

Rory nodded, "Okay. Well…can I have a double cheesburger with extra fries please Luke?" She said with a smile.

Luke sighed, "One heart attack on a plate coming up." He turned to Lorelai, "And for you? You want the same thing I assume…"

Lorelai wrinkled her nose, "Hm…no. I think I want something different today."

"Oh boy…" Rory said with a chuckle, "Are you going to make him make you another Santa Burger?"

"You told her about that?" Luke said as his face reddened.

Lorelai smiled innocently at him, "I tell her everything Luke! And that was the most adorably disgusting thing anyone has ever done for me. Of course I told her!"

Luke groaned, "Well its August so don't even ask me for one."

Lorelai laughed, "I wouldn't dream of it. But to be honest I want something totally different than what I would normally get. Can I see a menu?"

Luke rolled his eyes, "Since when do you need to look at a menu? You've been coming here every damn day for over a decade."

Lorelai scoffed at him, "You know in just a few short weeks this Diner is as good as mine as it is yours mister…I suggest you lose the attitude before I make you paint it hot pink!"

He smirked at her, "As good as yours huh? Says who?"

She smirked back, "You are the one that told me that when we are married what's yours is mine…therefore the Diner is half mine. You already technically are invested in the Inn but once we are married you too will be part owner of the Dragonfly as well. So if you still want to marry me…then you better get used to people addressing me as Mrs. Diner lady or Mrs. Backwards Baseball cap cuz you're stuck with me once we say 'I do'."

Luke pretended to groan, "What have I gotten myself into?"

Rory laughed but Lorelai gasped and smacked his arm, "Take that back Luke Danes! You would be totally and utterly lost without me and you know it!"

Luke smiled at her and pulled a menu out for her to look at, "Do I need to create a new dish called the Lorelai special if you own half the Diner?"

Lorelai's face beamed, "Oh. My. GOD! That would be AWESOME!"

Rory rolled her eyes, "You never should have even suggested it Luke…you really are a sucker when it comes to her."

"Think of the possibilities!" Lorelai said putting a hand on her cheek, "It could be my usual breakfast combo of scrambled eggs, three chocolate chip banana pancakes, a Belgian waffle with whipped cream and strawberries and all the bacon you can eat. Or…it could be my TRIPLE burger with extra crispy fries and a side of onion rings. OR I could come up with something even better!"

Luke looked at her in disgust, "I will never understand where you put all that junk…"

"Well you better enjoy my body now babe because we both know in about ten tears all that junk is gonna catch up to me." She said smiling coyly at him.

Luke grimaced, "Great…does that mean I can let my body go too?"

Lorelai shook her head, "Oh no…you have to always have your six back or else."

Rory laughed as Luke raised an eyebrow at her, "Or else what?"

"Or else I divorce you." She said with a flat tone that suggested that was a given, "I think that should be part of our vows…you'll say "I promise to love you even when you weigh 500 pounds and I promise to always keep my six pack so you can brag to all your friends about how hot your husband is."

"You're insane, you know that right?" He asked as Rory continued to laugh beside her.

Lorelai leaned towards him and pursed her lips, "But you still love me right?"

Luke smiled. "Yep."

"And you really would be totally and utterly lost without me, right?" She asked leaning even futher over the counter.

Luke nodded once, "Yep."

"Kiss please." She said smiling over at him.

Luke smiled and met her half way to give her a quick peck on the lips, "Now that that is settled, what do you want to eat? I can hear your stomach growling from over here."

Lorelai sighed and sat back and opened the menu, "Lets see…"

Rory groaned, "This could take awhile…"

"You hush." Lorelai said pointing a finger at her daughter but never taking her eyes off of the menu, she read a few more things and then placed the menu down on the counter. "I'll have a house salad with grilled chicken on top and no onions. Dressing on the side please."

Rory and Luke were silent for a minute before they both started laughing, "Wow. That was a good one Mom! I almost believed you for a second."

Luke chuckled, "Seriously Lorelai…what do you want?"

Lorelai frowned, "I really want a house salad with grilled chicken, no onions and dressing on the side."

Rory stopped laughing and her face quickly fell, "Mom?" She reached over and put a hand on her forehead, "Mom are you feeling okay?"

Lorelai swatted her hand away, "I feel fine other than being hungry."

Rory glanced over at Luke, "What have you done to her?"

Luke threw his hands up quickly, "I didn't do anything. She ordered that all on her own. Don't blame me…"

"Mom…" Rory said quickly looking back over at her, "If Luke is forcing you to order this and you feel like you have no way out…blink once."

Lorelai rolled her eyes, "Would you stop being so dramatic? I just want a salad. What's so crazy about that?"

"You hate salads! You literally pick off lettuce on your burgers when Luke forgets to leave it off." Rory said in shock, "Why would you willingly order a whole bowl of lettuce topped with a million other gross vegetables and GRILLED chicken when you can have a burger and fries? Are you afraid you won't fit into your wedding dress or something?"

Lorelai shook her head, "No. I'm just really craving a nice healthy salad right now." She said with a shrug.

Luke's eyes widened as Lorelai's words echoed through the room. He watched Rory for a second, waiting for her to register what her Mother had just said. Luke and Lorelai had planned on telling Rory about the baby after dinner once all the rest of the customers were gone. But he had a feeling Lorelai's choice of words would trigger Rory into figuring it all out now.

"Craving?" Rory said looking between her Mother and Luke, "Your body doesn't crave healthy food Mom. It just doesn't." She paused and then sat up straighter, "Unless…"

Lorelai's face reddened, "Rory…"

"Oh my GOD." Rory exclaimed as she put a hand over her mouth. "OH MY GOD!"

"Rory…" Lorelai said reaching for her, "Shhh..."

Rory looked around at the other Diner customers and she quickly leaned and whispered, "Are you…?"

Luke cleared his throat and walked around the counter, "Lets talk about this upstairs…" He put a hand on both of their backs and started to lead them towards the curtain before calling out, "Be back in a minute Ceasar."

"Okay!" Ceaser called from the kitchen.

The three of them quickly walked up the stairs and into Luke's apartments. There were boxes everywhere full of Luke's things as he was finishing up packing so they could move into the new house as soon as it was ready. Rory started to pace among the boxes as Lorelai and Luke stood side be side near the door.

"You would never order something healthy on your own." Rory said shaking her head, "Not unless something was making you…or maybe someone." She paused and turned back to her Mom and soon to be step-father. "Someone like Luke's baby who would have weird tastes in food that would make you crave gross salads!"

Lorelai smiled weakly, "Surprise…you're going to be a big sister!"

Rory stared at them for a moment, unable to speak. Her eyes looked like they were filling up with tears which made Lorelai nervously glance over at Luke feeling like her fears were coming true. Luke looked at his fiancé and then back at her daughter and stepped towards her.

"Rory before you get upset you have to know that your Mom and I are always going to be here for you. It doesn't matter if we have another kid, we still love you and-" He started to ramble but was cut off when he felt the young girls arms wrap around his neck.

"I'm so happy for you guys!" Rory said holding him tightly. "I can't believe this!"

Luke held her back and let out a sigh of relief, "So you're okay with it?"

"You aren't mad?" Lorelai asked from behind her daughter and fiancé.

Rory sniffled and pulled away from Luke, "God, of course I'm not mad! This is amazing!" She stepped away from Luke and quickly wrapped her arms around her Mom. "This is so great!"

Lorelai felt her own tears begin to fall from her eyes and she quickly wrapped her arms around her daughter. "Oh sweetie…"

"I know how much you wanted to have a baby with Luke." Rory said giving her another squeeze before pulling back and smiling at them both. "I think this is awesome. And I totally want another sister or brother. I don't get to see GiGi much and didn't know April as a baby. Now I'll get a tiny little baby to spoil when I come home on visits!"

Lorelai beamed at her daughter, "It will be the best dressed kid in Connecticut."

Rory nodded, "You better believe it." She smiled and leaned up to wipe her tears away, "I can't believe you thought I'd be upset…"

Lorelai sniffled, "I just don't want you to feel left out…"

Rory shook her head, "That's not possible Mom. I know how much you love me…" She turned back to Luke and her face reddened, "How much you both love me…"

Luke smiled shyly at her, "I'm glad you know I love you too Rory. I always have…you are always going to be a part of this family. A huge part. Nothing will ever change that."

Rory swallowed the lump in her throat, "Thank you…" She whispered.

Lorelai felt so overwhelmed with love her few tears quickly turned into a waterfall. "Oh God…"

Rory quickly turned back towards her Mom, "Mom? Mom, what's wrong?"

Lorelai laughed and waved her off as the tears continued to fall freely, "Nothing. Nothing I'm just crazy. Ignore me."

Luke laughed and walked over to Lorelai, "It's the hormones. Last night she cried for an hour watching an old episode of The Brady Bunch when Marsha got hit with the football."

"They broke her nose!" Lorelai screamed, "Marsha was so pretty and they just broke her damn nose!"

Rory couldn't help but laugh, "Mom…"

"And then one of those commercials came on with the Dogs and that Sarah Mchlachlan song…I had to go to the store to buy more tissues. She held poor Paul Anka so tightly I thought she was going to crack one of his ribs." Luke said as he rubbed Lorelai's back soothingly.

"It's the freaking song! It gets me every time! And then at the end the little kitten reaches its paw out to you and you just want to save all the cats! I don't even like cats!" Lorelai said as she continued to wail into her hands.

Luke rubbed her back, "Shh…it's okay."

"Wow…" Rory whispered, "Were you this bad when you were pregnant with me?"

Lorelai sniffled and wiped at her eyes, "No. I don't know what's wrong with me. Luke's kid is making me into a mutant who cries and likes to eat leaves. I have to call Anna and ask her if she was this bad with April…"

Luke grimaced, "Please don't call her to compare pregnancy notes…that's weird."

"Well I need to know what to expect Luke! If I start drinking protein shakes in the morning I'm going to be really concerned." Lorelai said glaring up at him.

"If you start drinking protein shakes in the morning I'll know you finally cracked." Luke said with a chuckle, "Come here and sit down for a minute…"

Luke led her over to the couch where Rory followed and sat down in the recliner and watched them intently. Luke reached for a box of tissues and handed them to Lorelai who quickly tried to dry her eyes despite the fact that more tears were brimming in her eyes.

"God I really don't know what is wrong with me…" She sniffled as she looked back at her daughter, "I can't help myself…everything is making me cry!"

"Well you have had a hell of a few months Mom…I'm sure it's really overwhelming. And now that you are pregnant your body is going through all of these changes that's messing up your whole system." She leaned forward and reached for her hands, "You okay?"

Lorelai smiled weakly at her and gave her hand a squeeze, "Yeah…its just a lot all at once. A lot of good things...my heads just trying to catch up to it all."

"Understandable." Rory said with a nod, "But you really don't have to worry about me feeling left out. I think this is great that you are having another baby."

"You do?" Lorelai asked with a nervous smile as her eyes filled with tears again.

Rory smiled, "Yeah. I do. I mean…I know that you and Luke love each other and you should start a family together. Luke helped raise me so we know he will be good at it…"

Lorelai glanced over at Luke and smiled, she lifted her hand to stroke his cheek gently. "That's what I told him…but he doesn't seem to believe me."

Luke blushed, "I've never done the baby thing…"

Rory shrugged, "You'll learn. I mean…if Mom could do it on her own at sixteen I'm sure you can figure it out easily." She swallowed hard and looked back at her Mom, "I think its good to because since I'm leaving…you'll be distracted so you won't miss me so much."

Lorelai sighed and shook her head "Oh hon…I think it will make me miss you more."

Rory smiled, "Maybe…"

Lorelai stared at her daughter for another moment and then threw her head back, "Oh come on…" Rory laughed as she saw the tears falling down her cheeks again. "I'm going to cry a freaking lake before this kid is born if this keeps up…"

Luke reached for another tissue and handed it to her, "Well then the baby will have its very own lake swim in."

Lorelai laughed, "Shut up…"

Rory squeezed her mothers hand again, "As long as they are happy tears there is nothing to be worried about…"

Lorelai lifted her head and nodded, "They are happy tears…"

Rory smiled, "Good."

"You know…only you and Sookie know about this right now. And it's still very early in the pregnancy…" Lorelai whispered as she pulled at the tissue in her hand. "So…Luke and I want to wait awhile before we tell everyone else…"

Rory nodded, "Okay…but everything is going to be fine. You know that right?"

Lorelai smiled weakly, "Just to be safe…I am older now so I want to make sure the baby is healthy before I start blabbing about it."

"I understand." Rory whispered, "Has Luke made you give up coffee yet?"

Luke smirked, "She hasn't had a cup since yesterday."

Rory gasped, "Wow…how are you feeling?"

Lorelai sighed, "Maybe that's why I'm crying so much…is that a withdrawal symptom? My body is in complete shock without the caffeine fix so its totally throwing everything off in my body."

Luke rolled his eyes, "Yeah…I'm sure that's what it is."

Lorelai laughed, "Luke did promise to pump my IV with coffee right after the baby's is born though."

"Well aside from the whole holding your baby thing…that's definitely something to look forward too." Rory said with a chuckle.

"I know right?" Lorelai said with an excited smile.

Luke shook his head, "Unbelievable…"

"Just think babe…in a few short months there is a very good possibility that there will be another little Lorelai in your life! A tiny baby who will have you wrapped around your finger and begging for coffee in their bottle." Lorelai said with a chuckle.

"Oh good God…" He said bowing his head nervously. "Should have thought about this more…"

Rory laughed, "It will probably come out with a flannel shirt on and a coffee mug in its hand."

"That might hurt coming out…" Lorelai said with a frown. "But you're probably right…"

Luke groaned, "Aw geez…I'm going back to work."

Lorelai and Rory continued to laugh as they watched him stand up and walk towards the door. "Wait, Luke!" Rory said with tears in her eyes as she continued to laugh.

He sighed and turned back towards them, "I'm probably going to regret this but…what is it now?"

Rory took a deep breath and smiled sincerely at him, "Thanks for making Mom so happy…"

Luke's face softened and he smiled, "You got it kid…" He nodded his head once and then cast a smile towards Lorelai before exiting the apartment leaving the Mother and daughter alone.

Lorelai wiped at her tears again, "So…you're really okay with this?"

Rory smiled at her, "Of course I am! I mean…it's not like I expected to be an only child forever. Its not a total shock to me Mom. Besides, I think this is great. I know how much you love Luke and I think you guys will make one hell of a cute baby."

"I know right?" Lorelai asked excitedly, "Sookie and I went onto this site where you can take a picture of the Mom and Dad and blend it together to see what your baby looks like. Ours looked a bit like an alien but a damn cute alien…"

Rory laughed and shook her head, "You really are crazy…"

Lorelai smiled, "Well aren't you lucky that I'm your Mom then?"

Rory nodded slowly, "The luckiest…"

Lorelai took a shaky breath and nodded, reaching out she took her daughters hand. "You will always be my first love Rory…you changed my life kid. I'd be lost without you. And no matter how far you move away or who else comes into our lives…I am ALWAYS going to be here for you. Don't think for one second that you can't call me because I'm to busy with the new baby…I can multi task better than anyone I know."

Rory's eyes brimmed up with tears; "It will be strange…but a good strange. I still haven't figured out when the hell I grew up but I am excited to chase a new baby around."

Leaning forward, Lorelai brushed a tear away from her daughter's eyes. "You and I will always have a special bond…something no one else will ever understand."

"I know…" Rory said as she continued to get choked up, "I really love you Mom…"

Lorelai smiled, "Well I really love you too kid…"

Rory swallowed hard and stood up before sitting down on the couch next to her Mom. Lorelai put her arm around and Rory curled up beside her, resting her head in the crook of her Mothers neck. They sat in silence for a few minutes as Lorelai began to play with Rory's hair like she had done when she was a little girl.

"Hey…think it will be twins? You know like in your dream?" Rory asked nudging her Mother gently.

Lorelai giggled, "That would be crazy wouldn't it? After all these years of trying to tell you that I have psychic powers I would finally have proof that I'm gifted!"

"You're not gifted Mom…special yes but not gifted." Rory said teasingly.

"I'm going to pretend I don't know what you meant by that." Lorelai said playfully pulling at a lock of her hair, "But that would be pretty cool."

Rory nodded in agreement, "I really do think Luke will be a great Dad…he already is. To me and April."

"I know…" Lorelai said with a happy sigh, "I think he will look so adorable with a baby in his arms."

"The baby will totally break his hard exterior once and for all. He'll turn into a puddle of mush when he holds it for the first time." Rory said with a laugh.

"Yes he will…" Lorelai said as she started running her hands through Rory's hair again, "Just like I was when I held you for the first time…"

Rory smiled and glanced up at her Mom, "Not that I don't love this little love fest we have going on here…but I really am hungry. Think we can go down and eat now?"

Lorelai laughed, "Sure."

They stood up together and Rory called out towards her, "You know if you don't want people to know about the baby…you might want to rethink your salad order. People will get suspicious…think your body can handle a burger and fries?"

Lorelai laughed, "Maybe I'll get a turkey burger and no one will know the difference."

Rory shook her head in disbelief, "Man…Luke's baby has weird tastes."

"I know right?" She said laughing as she wrapped an arm around her.

They walked down into the Diner again where Luke was waiting for them. They put in their new orders and whispered quietly together about all the things they were excited for when the new baby came…

* * *

The next night, Luke, Lorelai and Rory all went to Friday night dinner together. It was hard to keep the secret of her pregnancy from her parents but Lorelai wanted to make sure everything was okay before she told anyone else. She tried to refuse drinks when her Mother offered but in the end had to settle for holding them in her hand and forcing Rory or Luke to take sips when Emily had her back to them. By the end of the night, both Luke and Rory were feeling a little woozey.

Lorelai drove them all back to Stars Hollow and helped her tipsy daughter to bed. Then she wandered upstairs where Luke was sprawled out on her bed still in his clothes and staring up at the ceiling.

"Has the ceiling always been so big?" Luke asked curiously.

Lorelai laughed as she reached for a box near the bed, "Uh…I think so. Yes."

Luke huffed, "Man…its really big. I just…I don't remember it ever looking so big."

"Now I know why you aren't a vodka man…" She said rifling through the box.

"Yeah its been awhile…" Luke mumbled, "Your Mom was giving me funny looks before we left."

"She always gives you funny looks…she secretly wants you as her lover." Lorelai teased him.

Luke glared at her, "Not funny."

"It wasn't a joke…" Lorelai said with a smirk.

Luke rolled his eyes and rolled over onto his stomach to look at the box in front of her, "More packing? I thought you were pretty much done."

Lorelai nodded, "I am. But I found this box in the attic today…"

"I thought I told you not to go up there. It's not safe for you to be climbing up anything." He said with a stern frown.

She shrugged, "Rory was with me…we were safe. I promise."

"Well please try and stay away from it from now on. And when we really start moving you aren't allowed to do any heavy lifting." Luke said, then frowned, "In fact, if I didn't know any better I would think you planned this so you wouldn't have to help with the actual move."

Lorelai laughed, "Shockingly that never occurred to me but it is quite brilliant."

Luke laughed, "So…what's in this box anyway?"

Lorelai smiled and sat down on the edge of bed, she reached into the box and pulled out a tiny pink outfit. "Rory's baby box…"

Luke smiled and reached his hand out to touch the soft material, "Its hard to believe she ever fit into something this small…"

"She was the most itty bitty baby I'd ever seen. I honestly thought I would break her when they handed her to me in the hospital. She was such a little peanut." Lorelai said smiling at the memory.

"Did your Mom buy you this stuff?" He asked staring down at a few more outfits in the box.

Lorelai shook her head, "No. I made them all."

Luke looked up at her in surprise, "Seriously?"

"I think my parents were in denial about the whole pregnancy thing so they didn't buy anything. And then once I had her I realized I didn't have any clothes for her…but I also didn't have any money." She sighed, "So when I went home to pack up some things I grabbed blankets and old clothes from my room and brought them with me. And then I sewed some outfits together to at least get me through the first month or two…"

Luke laughed when he pulled out a tiny shirt that had Bono's face on the front. "This had to be one of yours."

Lorelai smirked, "That was my first ever concert T-shirt. I hated to cut it up but it wasn't going to fit me after I had her so I figured it would look better on her. I felt guilty for cutting everyone but Bono though…"

"Its pretty amazing that you did all of this for her." He said glancing up at her.

Lorelai bit her lip nervously, "I didn't have much of a choice…"

Luke watched her for a moment and then sat up, he scooted closer to her. "For what its worth you did a hell of a job with her…"

Lorelai smiled weakly, "It was the scariest thing I had ever done…I mean I could barely take care of my self and suddenly I had this tiny person I was responsible for. Absolutely terrifying…"

Luke smiled, "When I found out about April and I got over the initial shock…I was terrified. I kept thinking how the hell could I possibly be responsible enough to keep her safe?"

"She's changed a lot in the last year since you've been in her life…" Lorelai whispered, "She's grown so much…she's a lot like you."

Luke smiled, "I hope so…" He looked down in the box and pulled out a little converse sneaker, "You would buy these for Rory…"

Lorelai laughed, "Mia bought those actually…she said Rory should match her Mom."

Luke laughed, "Well she does. It's actually scary how alike you two are."

Lorelai smirked and then reached into the box and took out a photo album, she flipped a few pages and then stopped and laughed. "This was the first time she had chocolate cake…"

Luke laughed, "I recognize that face…it's the same face you make every time you eat cake too."

"And that was when she walked for the first time…she did it right in the lobby of the Independence Inn." She said resting her chin on his shoulder as she pointed to another picture. "I was getting ready to finish up for the night and was filling out some paper work…and I looked down and she had stood up and just started walking towards the front door. I was so shocked that she was walking that she was almost out the front door by the time I ran after her."

"They grow up fast…" Luke whispered.

Sighing, she ran her hand over one of the pictures of the one year old Rory. "Yeah…that seems like yesterday and now she's moving all the way to New York City all on her own…"

Luke nodded, "Yep…and we're having another baby. We'll have a whole new photo album to fill up with memories of this new kid."

Lorelai lifted her head to look at him, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure." He said reaching up to push her hair out of her face.

"Do you remember when I got that offer from the Durham group?" She asked.

Luke nodded slowly, "Yeah. What about it?"

She smiled at him, "You came to the Inn to fix something and then we started talking about me taking the job and you freaked. You kept going on and on about the kids…and when I asked you what you meant you ran off."

Luke smiled nervously. "Uh huh…"

"You knew then that you wanted to have kids with me, didn't you?" She asked quietly.

Luke laughed, "Uh Lorelai…I've known for a hell of a lot longer than that that I wanted to have kids with you."

"Like how long?" She asked curiously.

He sighed, "I mean I can't give you an exact date…but probably right around the time of the dance marathon. You know when Sookie and Jackson got into the fight about the four in four thing. You and I talked about kids…"

"You wanted to make sure I knew that you didn't hate kids…" Lorelai whispered.

Luke nodded, "Yeah. I didn't want to ruin what little chance I thought I had at being with you because you thought I didn't want a family."

She nodded slowly, "So you wanted it then?"

"I think I wanted it a lot sooner than that but that was when I finally admitted it to myself I think." He said with a shrug, "I mean that night you came to the Diner when we weren't talking and you were talking about how you wanted the whole package I kind of figured out that I wanted to be the guy to give it to you."

Lorelai looked deep into his eyes and smiled, "Want to know a secret?"

He cocked his head to the side and smiled, "Sure."

She leaned forward and kissed him gently, "After that night I kind of knew I wanted that too…"

He smiled, "Was that before or after the dream you had about us having twins?"

Lorelai laughed, "After. So I guess in a way my subconscious was trying to tell me that you were the one all along…"

"Maybe…" He whispered as he rubbed her leg softly.

"Sometimes I feel sad that we wasted so much time…" She whispered in a pained voice.

Luke nodded slowly and began to trace patterns on her leg, "Me too…" He took a deep breath and shrugged, "But maybe we had to go through all that crap to get to where we are now. We just weren't ready before…"

She nodded, "Yeah maybe…"

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead gently and whispered against her skin, "Hey…" She lifted her head to look at him with tears in her eyes, "You know I love you right?"

She smiled; "I do…"

He smiled back and kissed her nose, "And you love me?"

She closed her eyes and rested her forehead against his, "More than you could possibly ever know…"

"Then lets not think about what could have been and just enjoy what is…" He whispered against her. "In two weeks we are getting married, our house will be finished shortly after that. And then in about eight months…we will have a baby to take care of. April and Rory are both happy and healthy, and even though they are going to be far away we will still see them as much as we can and talk to them everyday. And no matter what…we'll be together."

She swallowed hard and pulled away slowly, "Okay." She paused again, "Can I tell you one last thing though? You know about the past?"

He nodded, "Sure."

She licked her lips and looked back towards the corner of her room. "That night…" She shuddered slowly, "That night that Christopher…" She sighed and turned to him again, "I was so scared Luke…I didn't know what to do. I couldn't move…and then I heard your voice…"

He closed his eyes, trying to ignore the image of her face poking out from around the door to look at her. He still remembered how frightened she looked, how raw and new the bruises looked against her pale flesh. He remembered how his stomach had dropped and he felt like someone had ripped his heart out of his chest.

"Lorelai…" He whispered reaching for her gently, he squeezed her arm affectionately.

"When I thought it was just Rory I couldn't face it. And then when I heard your voice I just wanted to run to you and have you hold me. I wanted to just stay in your arms forever and just hide…" She sniffled and nuzzled his arm.

"I felt sick to my stomach when I saw you…knowing what he did to you I just wanted to go and kill him. I will never understand how he could lay his hands on you…how he could hurt you that way. I have been angry and hurt before but I could never do that…" He whispered running his hands through her hair.

"To be honest…" She pulled away and looked up at him, "If you hadn't come here that night Luke…I don't know if I would have pressed charges. I don't know if I could have found the strength to leave him. I didn't love him…but I was so scared."

"You are stronger than you think Lorelai. You made all the decisions yourself…" He told her.

"But having you here helped me. You made me feel stronger." Lorelai whispered, "When I saw you standing outside my door that night…I knew no mater what happened I would be okay. I couldn't understand why you were there…how you could have come here after everything that happened but God I was so happy to see you…"

He shook his head, "I will always be here for you. No matter what happens."

She squeezed his arm and pulled him closer, "Well you better be. I'm never letting you go again Luke. I need you."

He smiled softly, "I need you too…"

She took another deep breath, "I guess what I'm trying to say is that…you saved me that night Luke. You saved me from myself…and I don't know how I will ever be able to thank you for that."

He smiled at her, "You already are…you're marrying me and having my baby. What better way to say thank you and I love you?"

"I do love you…" She whispered, "So much…"

Leaning forward, he placed a gentle kiss on her lips. "Come on…its been a busy few days. You must be exhausted…"

Lorelai smiled and put the box on the floor as Luke got up to start to change. She watched him pull his t-shirt off and before he could throw it in the hamper she grabbed it and slipped it over her naked body. He laughed and slipped into his boxers before they both brushed their teeth and got into bed.

Luke pulled her up against him as she traced patterns against his chest, "Only two more weeks…" She whispered.

"Yep. I'm finally going to make an honest woman out of you." He said with a chuckle.

"Even with a ring on my finger no one will believe I'm very innocent." She said with a smirk, "And once they find out we got pregnant first…my reputation will be fully tarnished."

He rolled his eyes, "It doesn't really matter does it? Whether we were married or not when he or she was conceived, this baby is going to be incredibly loved."

She lifted her head to stare down at him, "I hope we have a little boy that looks just like you…"

Luke smirked, "I do too."

She laughed, "Wow…vain much?"

"Lorelai if we have a little girl that looks like you and Rory I really will turn into mush…" He said with a chuckle.

She smiled, "That's true…"

"And if it's a girl I'll never be able to let her go on a date. I'll have to start carrying a shot gun to ward off all the boys and I'll probably have a heart attack the day she gets married." He said with a groan.

"And if it's a boy you'll be rooting him on to score all the hottest chicks in Stars Hollow right?" She said raising her eyebrow at him.

Luke smirked, "He'll follow in his fathers footsteps."

She laughed, "Butch J.R.!"

Luke groaned and pushed her away, "Forget it…I'll take a girl."

Lorelai laughed and grabbed for him again, pulling him onto his side to face her. "Whatever it is…I can't wait to meet it."

"Do you want to find out if it's a boy or a girl when we can?" He asked curiously as he traced her cheek with his finger.

Lorelai shrugged, "I don't know. Being surprised might be kind of nice but we both know that the waiting will literally kill me…"

Luke chuckled, "Yes it will."

"So maybe we should find out so I don't drive you completely insane." She said with a smile.

He smirked, "I think you already have."

She laughed and began to play with the hairs on his chest, "Hey Luke?"

He watched her for a moment before answering, "Yeah?"

"I know you said that marrying you and having your baby was a good enough thank you for saving me." She paused and lifted her eyes to look at him, "But do you think I can show you some more how appreciative I am?"

Luke smiled and nodded slowly, "I think I could be okay with that…"

She smiled and leaned forward to kiss him, "I love you Luke Danes…"

"And I love you Mrs. Soon to be Lorelai Danes…" He said with a laugh against her lips.

She squealed with delight and rolled him over so she could straddle his hips, "I can't wait to be your wife…"

He smiled up at her and pulled her face down again to kiss her passionately. "Come here crazy lady…"

She couldn't stop smiling as he pulled her even closer and she reveled in the feeling of his body against hers. In that moment she finally pushed away all the regrets she had of the past and made sure to focus only on the future. Their future. She didn't want to miss a thing…

* * *

**Hopefully this wasn't to sappy or boring. Let me know what you thought. I'll try and update soon! Send in those reviews! **


	19. Chapter 18

**Hey guys, thanks for your patience! I mentioned before that this would be the last chapter before the wedding but I changed my mind. There will be one more after this and then the wedding. As far as going past the wedding and into the pregnancy and baby stuff...I'm thinking of possibly doing a sequel. At least if anyone is interested...so let me know what you think about that.**

**So in this chapter the Gilmores and Liz and TJ find out about the baby. Also Jess is back. I know there are a lot of you that are Rory/Jess shippers but I'm not so crazy about the idea of them being together once Luke and Lorelai are married. But I do love them as friends so we will see what happens. Anyway...enjoy this chapter and I will try and update soon! Thanks again!**

**Oh one more thing...I'm totally drawing a blank what the hell is TJ's last name? It was driving me nuts that I couldn't figure it out! Thanks!**

* * *

Before they knew it, the wedding was only three days away! Getting the house ready, planning for the wedding, picking a place for a honeymoon and trying to hide a pregnancy was beginning to prove to be very stressful. Lorelai was exhausted most days, but she tried to hide it as best she could. Only Luke, Rory and Sookie could see through her bright attitude and had to remind her to take care of herself from time to time.

One afternoon Lorelai was trying to finalize the seating chart with her mother at the Inn. Since she hadn't had a cup of coffee since she found out she was pregnant, she was having serious withdrawals. She sat on the front porch with her mother trying her best not to snap at her. But that was proving difficult when she realized her mother had snuck in a few of her personal friends onto the guest list.

"Mom I told you that Luke and I wanted a small wedding. I don't want all these people Dad works with. I don't know them!" She yelled feeling extremely frustrated.

"Lorelai they have worked with your father for YEARS. It would be rude not to invite them. And since you and Christopher eloped-" She stared to say, but her eyes grew wide and she stopped. "I mean…"

"Well since that marriage wasn't legal, you probably wouldn't have wanted your friends to know about it anyway." Lorelai said with an angry bark.

"I didn't mean to bring that up…I just…it slipped out." Emily said with a soft whisper, "I'm so sorry…"

Lorelai sighed, "It's fine…I mean you've probably been dying to tell your friends about a real wedding. I've only been engaged a million times before. Invite whomever you want! I'm sure people will place bets to see if I actually make it down the aisle this time."

"Lorelai…" Emily said leaning into her, "You know I don't think of you like that."

"Are you sure?" Lorelai asked feeling tears well up in her eyes, "Because I feel like everyone else does. I wouldn't blame you if you did…"

"Lorelai please…" Emily whispered to her, "I don't want to fight with you. I said a stupid thing, you know I can't stand Christopher after what he did to you. I know you are going to marry Luke. And I know this time it will stick, he's the one. That's pretty obvious now."

Lorelai sighed again and brushed some hair behind her ear, "I'm sorry I snapped…I'm just exhausted. There is so much to do before the actual wedding and I'm afraid we won't finish it all in time. And now there is some huge storm going through St. John so I don't know if we can even go there for our honeymoon! And I feel like I've gained weight so what if the dress doesn't fit? And-"

"Lorelai slow down…" Emily said reaching for her daughters hand, "Take a deep breath."

Inhaling slowly, Lorelai leaned back in her chair and sighed. "God I'm a mess…"

"It's just pre-wedding jitters. Everyone has them." Emily said with a shrug.

Lorelai laughed, "Oh really? Did you have them before you married Dad?"

Emily scoffed, "Are you kidding? I think I tried to run five times before your grandfather dragged me into the church!"

Lorelai stared in at her in surprise, "Really? But I thought you always knew you loved Dad?"

Emily smiled, "I did. I have always loved your father, I knew he was the one. But…getting married is still scary even if you love the person. It's a whole new chapter of your life…its daunting but also very exciting."

Lorelai nodded slowly, "I know Luke loves me…I know I love him. I know I can't live without him. But…it's still a little scary. With everything we have been through sometimes I worry about losing him again…"

Emily shook her head, "I don't think that's possible. If he's still around now after everything, then he's not going anywhere."

"I don't think so either…" Lorelai whispered placing a hand on her stomach, it was so automatic to her now she didn't think twice.

But Emily Gilmore was quick on her feet, and she immediately noticed the movement. "Lorelai…"

Lorelai's eyes widened and she looked down at her hand, then she pulled it away and stood up. "You know I think Sookie said she wanted you to try what the cooking staff was making for the reception. She wants your stamp of approval on everything. I think you'll like it all too, Luke's been helping her out when he can. And even though I didn't want her doing any of the cooking since she's in the wedding…she insisted on making the cake. I couldn't stop her so-"

"Lorelai is there something you would like to tell me?" Emily asked from her seat.

Lorelai's eyes fell on her mother and suddenly she felt like she was sixteen again. She remembered the sickening feeling she had felt when she had to tell her parents she was pregnant than. The look of horror and shame on their faces was one she never wanted to see again. She knew that her parents both loved her; she knew that at the end of the day they would do anything for her. But…they still battled over a lot of things and Lorelai's teenage pregnancy had definitely been one of them.

She knew that at her age, her mother really had no say in any aspects of her life. That didn't mean that she didn't voice her opinion as often as she could. Over the last few months they had become extremely close, Emily had supported her through everything with Christopher. And for that, Lorelai would be forever grateful.

But for whatever reason…Lorelai couldn't pretend that telling her mother that she had gotten pregnant out of wedlock again wasn't a terrifying thought. "I uh…"

Emily stood up slowly and walked towards her, "Should we go to your office?"

Lorelai opened her mouth to speak again but found she could only nod. Then she turned and walked through the front door, the same door that Luke had kissed her for the very first time. The door that had started everything for them, and she suddenly wished that he was here with her right now.

Once they reached her office, Emily shut the door behind them and turned back to her only daughter. "Well…?"

With a soft sigh, Lorelai began to talk. "I wasn't trying to hide if from you. It's just that its still early and Luke and I wanted to wait to make sure everything was okay. Rory knows…and Sookie knows because she kind of figured it out before I did. No one else does though…I'm not due until March. So I just…I'm trying to be as careful as possible with all of this."

Emily was quiet for a moment, her face was hard to read and Lorelai felt like she was going to be sick. She couldn't tell if she was angry or happy, but at the moment she was leaning towards angry.

"Mom before you say anything I want you to remember that Luke loves me. And I love him. And I'm not sixteen anymore…so technically you can't be mad. I guess you can be disappointed in the fact that we aren't legally married yet but you shouldn't be…" She rambled again.

"Lorelai stop." Emily quickly said, "Stop talking for a second. You always talk so fast I can't get a word in!"

Lorelai swallowed hard, "Sorry. Nervous habit…"

Emily chuckled, "I know. But if you had let me respond before you started rambling…you would have realized that I wanted to say that I am so incredibly happy for you and Luke."

Lorelai felt her eyes well up with tears, "You are?"

Emily smiled and walked closer to her, "Of course I am! I'm going to be a grandmother again!"

Lorelai smiled, "Yeah…yeah you are."

Emily quickly pulled her into her arms and held her tightly; "My only request is that you don't shut us out this time. I want to know this baby…"

Lorelai held her mother back just as tight, "I want you to know this baby too…"

Emily pulled away and looked her over, "How are you feeling? Are you making sure you get enough rest? You've been so busy you need to make sure you drink lots of fluids and eat right. No more coffee and not to many cheese burgers even though I'm sure you are craving them like crazy!"

Lorelai laughed, "Don't worry, Luke has had me off the coffee since the moment we found out about the baby. And as far as cravings…this little peanut seems to be taking after its Daddy. All I want to eat are salads and grilled chicken on whole wheat buns!"

Emily smiled, "I'm sure Luke loves that!"

Lorelai nodded, "Yeah. But he's been good about sneaking in the boysenberry pie after dinner for me."

"See…he really does love you." Emily said with a laugh.

"Yes. He really does…" Lorelai said placing her hand over her belly, "And he loves our baby too…I know it. You should see him, he's already so careful around me. And he talks to my belly when he thinks I'm asleep… "

Emily smiled, "Your father used to do that."

Lorelai's eyes widened in surprise, "Really?"

"On nights when he would get home late…I would always try and stay awake to see him. But one night I fell asleep before he came home. And then before I knew it I woke up to the sound of his voice and I looked up and there he was talking to my stomach…telling you how much he already loved you."

"I always knew Dad was a softie at heart…" Lorelai said with tears in her eyes.

"You should know that despite the issues we have had along the way…your father and I have always loved you. Since the day we found out we were having you we loved you…I hope you know that." Emily said with a chocked voice.

Lorelai smiled, "I know Mom. I love you both too…sorry for driving you crazy growing up."

Emily chuckled, "It wasn't just when you were growing up…you still drive us crazy!" Lorelai blushed but Emily reached for her hand, "But we are so proud of the woman you have become…"

"Thank you Mom…" Lorelai whispered.

Emily smiled and looked down at her belly, "Oh I can't wait to spoil this kid rotten!"

Lorelai laughed, "I should have known you would say that…"

Emily looked up again, "Can we go to Luke's for lunch? I want to congratulate him!"

Lorelai nodded, "Yes. But you have to do it discreetly okay? We really aren't ready for the whole world to know just yet…"

Emily nodded, "Alright."

Lorelai smiled, grabbed her bag and told Michel that she would be back later. Then she and Emily walked towards the Diner, whispering about things they would need for the baby. When they walked into the Diner, Lorelai found a table in the corner and waved at Luke who was standing behind the counter.

He smiled, waved back and then went back to helping his customer. After a minute, he walked over to the table and bent down to kiss Lorelai gently.

"This is a nice surprise. I didn't expect you for lunch." He said looking at them, "How are you Emily?"

"Oh come here you!" Emily said jumping out of her seat as she wrapped her arms tightly around him.

Luke grunted as he felt her squeeze him tightly, "Uh…its good to see you too?" He glanced over at Lorelai desperately, he had rarely if ever hugged Emily before.

"Mom…" Lorelai said jumping up to grab her arm, "Mom we talked about this…let go."

"I'm just so happy…" Emily said clinging onto Luke, "It's just so wonderful!"

Luke cocked his eyebrow at his fiancé, "What is she talking about?"

"Mom…" Lorelai said noticing everyone was watching them now, "Mom cut it out."

Emily quickly pulled away and wiped at her eyes, "Oh goodness, I'm so sorry! I just couldn't help myself. I'm just so excited!"

Luke quickly glanced at Lorelai again, "Is she talking about what I think she's talking about?"

Lorelai swallowed hard and talked loudly, "If you mean is she talking about the fact that the Lobster Roll is back on the menu than you would be right! Emily Gilmore sure does love a good lobster roll!"

"The Lobster roll is back on the menu?" Kirk asked from his spot on the counter. "Luke why didn't you tell me?"

Luke sighed, "Because despite the fact that you love eating Lobster Kirk…you are allergic to it. I am NOT about to stab you with your epi pen again. Doing that once was enough for one lifetime."

"But it's so delicious!" Kirk yelled, "Please…I'll call LuLu and make her do it!"

Lorelai squinted at him, "Kirk, why would you want to eat something that wants to kill you?"

"I don't know Lorelai…why would you want to drink something that will eventually kill you by rotting out your insides?" Luke asked hands on hips, "Or why would you want to eat so much red meat when you know its terrible for you? Or why can't you eat a vegetable unless its deep fried and covered in salt?"

"Um…because its yummy and I'm beautiful so I don't have to worry about that kind of stuff?" She asked with an innocent smile.

Luke laughed and rolled his eyes before he turned back to Kirk, "Sit down and eat your grilled cheese Kirk. No one in this Diner is going to serve you lobster. If you really do have a death wish…come to the wedding. That's what we're having." He said with a wink at Lorelai.

"Really? I can't wait to tell Mother!" Kirk said quickly throwing money down on the counter before running out of the Diner.

Lorelai laughed, "He really is one of a kind…we are so lucky to live in the same town as him."

Luke grunted, "Oh yeah…its like we won the weirdo lottery when he moved here."

Lorelai smiled, "Aw hun…but just think about all the entertainment he has brought to our lives! Remember the time he dressed up like the town whore? That was classic! Or the time he ran butt naked into Taylors Bushes? I mean that's a memory I'd like to keep…"

"I want to erase the memory of him in a dress and the memory of him naked…however I do like to remember what happened just prior to him running into the bushes that night." He said with a happy smirk.

Lorelai beamed over at him, "I am pretty fond of what happened before that myself…"

Emily sighed, "God you are almost as bad as she is." She said with a point at her daughter, "I'm trying to have a moment here and you are just rambling!"

Lorelai smiled, "Well I told you to keep it down mother…"

Emily grimaced, "I'm sorry! I'm just so excited!"

"About the lobster!" Lorelai yelled looking around, "She really means about the lobster!"

Luke laughed and glanced at his soon to be mother-in-law, "Well I'm glad you are excited. We are pretty excited too." He whispered.

"About the lob-" Lorelai started to say again.

Luke rolled his eyes, "You can stop that now. They tuned you out a long time ago."

"Uh! I resent that! They have to remember that soon I'm going to be Mrs. Backwards Baseball cap so they need to respect the new part owner!" She said with a hand on her hip.

Luke rolled his eyes again, "So much work…"

"And yet you love me…" Lorelai said framing her face with her hands and smiling affectionately up at him.

"God help me…but I do." He said with a smile reaching out to rub her shoulder gently, then he turned back to Emily. "So…you really are okay with this?"

Emily smiled, "I'm thrilled! I told Lorelai I can't wait to spoil it rotten."

Luke chuckled, "I'm sure he or she will greatly appreciate it."

Emily smiled, "Good. But now all this talk of lobster rolls really has made me want one…we can talk more later when there isn't such an audience, yes?"

Luke nodded, "Absolutely. Mr. Gilmore is still meeting you here for dinner right? We can tell him then too."

"Yes. I'm glad we are doing that. It will be nice to all be together before the craziness of the wedding starts." Emily said as she and Lorelai took their seats again.

"I'm glad too. My sister and her husband are looking forward to meeting you. But I do warn you now they are a little eccentric…" Luke said with a nervous smile. "Even more so than this one…" He said pointing at Lorelai.

Emily chuckled as Lorelai stuck her tongue out at him, "I'm sure they are lovely. We are looking forward to meeting our new family members."

Luke nodded and then turned back to Lorelai, "Rory knows that Jess is coming tonight too? His flight will be in by three and then TJ is picking him up at the airport."

Lorelai nodded, "She knows and she is just fine with it. April will be here tomorrow, right?"

Luke nodded. "Yup. She can't wait to start all the wedding stuff with you and Rory. She's so excited."

"Good. I'm excited too." She said with a smile and then looked down at her now growling stomach, "But me and Junior are hungry…think you can whip us up a delicious omelet? I know its not breakfast but that's what your baby is craving."

Luke smiled and leaned down to kiss her, "Of course. I'll go head into the kitchen now. Holler if you need anything else."

"Oh we will!" Lorelai said raising her eyebrows suggestively at him.

He groaned as he work, "The work…geez…"

Emily and Lorelai laughed and quickly leaned in to one another again to discuss more wedding and baby things. Things were definitely a lot different this time around…

_  
That night, Luke was in the kitchen of Lorelai's house anxiously running around trying to make sure that dinner was perfect. Liz, TJ, Richard and Emily were all in the living room while Lorelai and Rory tried to make their meeting as smooth as possible. Lorelai quickly excused herself and to get a drink of water and found her soon to be husband tense and on the verge of a melt down.

"Hey babe?" Lorelai called from the table.

Luke glanced at her once and grunted, "What?"

"You uh…you okay? You look a little…nervous." She said with a slight frown, "If you are worried about TJ…he hasn't said anything embarrassing yet. In fact I think my Dad actually finds him quite amusing."

Luke whipped around, "Well do you think your Dad will find it amusing that I knocked you up before we were married?" He hissed out.

She jumped back at the harshness of his voice and then sighed, "Oh hon…"

"He's gonna kill me. I can feel it. He may not do it himself but he'll make a few phone calls and call a few people and I'll be dead by morning!" He said throwing his hand up in the air.

She laughed, "When did my Dad suddenly become part of the mafia? I knew we had money but I didn't realize it was because he whacked people for a living."

"Dirty." He said pointing his spatula at her and then moving on, "But I'm serious here Lorelai. He's gonna be pissed. I know your Mom took it well but your Dad is not gonna be too happy. If some guy came to me to tell me he got April or Rory pregnant before they were married I'd ring their neck. In fact I'll ring their neck even if they are married!"

"Well I hate to break it to you but Rory isn't exactly innocent anymore." Lorelai said with a laugh.

Luke grimaced, "Aw geez! I don't' want to hear this!"

"Luke…she lived with Logan. We went on vacation with them to Martha's Vineyard. Did you really think they were sleeping in separate beds despite the fact that they slept in the same room?" She asked cocking her head to the side.

"No. But I don't need to think about it. And April is never, ever allowed to have sex!" He said with a swipe of his hand and spatula.

Lorelai glanced down the hall, "Would you keep your voice down?"

"Lorelai…every father wants to think of their little girl as an innocent angel forever. Your Dad is literally going to KILL ME!" He yelled.

"Well considering I had a kid at sixteen that image of an innocent angel was pretty tarnished a long time ago." She said laughing again.

"Lorelai, I'm being serious here!" He yelled feeling frustrated.

"Is everything okay down here?" Liz asked with everyone following her down the hallway. "What's with all the yelling?"

"Well nows a good a time as any…" Lorelai said with a shrug, "Mom and Rory already know this but-"

"Lorelai…" Luke whispered, "I don't know if-"

"I'm pregnant." Lorelai said throwing her hands up in the air, "And yes we aren't married yet…but we are both grown adults and we love each other. We are going to be husband and wife and we want to have a family so we're starting now. And if anyone has a problem with it they can leave now."

"You're having a baby!?" Liz said excitedly, "I knew it! Your aura screams pregnant lady!"

"What exactly does that color look like?" Lorelai asked curiously cocking her head to the side.

"This is so exciting!" Liz said running up to her and throwing her arms around her, "I can't wait to be an Auntie! This is amazing!"

Lorelai grimaced, "Wow…I think you just broke my aura there Liz!"

Luke grimaced and walked over to pull his sister off of his fiancé, "Alright there Liz…loosen up will ya?"

"This is great." TJ said shaking his head, "I mean Doula isn't that old! Our kids can be best friends. I knew this would happen…didn't I tell ya Luke? I told ya we'd be parents together!" He walked over to Luke and clapped him on the back.

"Yeah…you did TJ." He said nervously glancing over at Richard who was silent in the corner.

Lorelai followed his glance, "So uh…Dad you're pretty quiet over there. You okay?"

Richard took a deep breath and opened his mouth to say something but Emily grabbed his arm, "Richard…before you say anything…just remember how much we missed with Rory. Think about how sad I was not being able to get to spoil my grandbaby with clothes and toys. And think about how I wouldn't get out of bed for weeks. And remember that-"

"Geez…and you say I ramble?" Lorelai said interrupting her mother, "That was pretty impressive Mom!"

Richard laughed and glanced at his wife, "Emily if you had let me talk before you had your little melt down…"

"I wasn't having a melt down I was just trying too-" She started with a huff.

"You would have realized that I was about to say…." He turned towards his daughter, "That I could not be any happier for you. This is wonderful!"

Lorelai smiled at him, "Really?"

Richard smiled and walked closer to his daughter, "Loreali…you are an amazing mother. I know this kid is going to turn out just as amazing as Rory did. I cannot wait to be a Grandfather again!"

"Oh Dad…" She said feeling her tears well up with tears, "Way to go straight for the water works!"

Richard chuckled and pulled her in for a hug, "Congratulations sweetheart."

Lorelai held him back, "Thank you Dad…"

Richard pulled back and turned towards Luke, "And Lucas…"

Luke swallowed hard, "Before you say anything I promise to take care of them from now until the day I die. And I swear that I have the upmost respect for your daughter. She is the most amazing woman I have ever met and I-"

"Lucas." Richard said in a more stern voice, "You have been spending entirely to much time with my daughter…you ramble just like her and my wife!"

Everyone laughed and Luke swallowed hard, "Sorry sir…"

Richard smile and stuck out his hand, "Congratulations Luke. I know that you will always take care of my daughter and my grandchild."

Luke took a deep breath and smiled, "Thank you…and I promise I will."

The back door opened just as they finished shaking hands and Jess walked in. "Hey…party in the kitchen. What did I miss?"

Liz jumped happily, "You're gonna have a new cousin!"

Jess smirked, "I knew it was only a matter of time…"

"Nice…" Luke said with a groan, "Can't you just say hello like a normal person?"

Jess laughed and walked over to his Uncle, "Hello." He paused and stuck his hand out for him. "Congratulations Uncle Luke…I'm really happy for you."

Luke and him shook hands and he smiled, "Thanks…"

"Hey Jess…" Lorelai said with a smile, "I'm so glad that you could make it for the wedding."

Jess smiled, "I wouldn't miss this wedding for the world. I've been waiting for this day since you took over the Diner when Uncle Lou died. I figured it was only a matter of time before you became Mrs. Diner owner. You enjoyed yelling out those orders way too much to not be more involved. Although I gotta say that it took a hell of a lot longer than I expected…"

Lorelai smacked him, "Hey! Shut up."

Jess laughed, "I'm kidding. Congratulations. On the wedding and the baby…"

Lorelai smiled, "Thank you Jess."

He nodded once and then turned to his Mom, "Hey Ma…hows it going?"

Liz smiled up at him, "Come here you handsome man!" She pulled him closer and kissed his cheeks, "God it seems like just yesterday I was peeing on the stick and telling Jimmy he knocked me up with you."

Jess laughed as Luke's face fell, "It's a wonder I became a writer when you talk with such a foul mouth."

Liz smacked him too, "Hey!"

Jess shook his head, "Just being honest…"

Lorelai smiled, "Jess you remember my parents, Emily and Richard Gilmore?"

Jess smiled, "Yes. Of course. Its great to see you again." He said reaching his hand out for Richard to shake.

Richard smiled, "You as well. Rory has forwarded us all your work. Very impressive."

Jess nodded, "Thank you sir."

"Hey Jess…" Rory whispered from beside her mother, "How are you?"

"I'm good." He looked her over for a minute, "You look great."

She smiled, "Thanks…"

"So…" Luke said trying to make it less awkward for Rory, "Is everyone hungry? Dinners almost ready."

"I am!" Lorelai said raising her hand quickly, "And I'm eating for two so I get to go first!"

Everyone laughed, "Come on…Rory want to help me with serving?"

"Sure." She walked with Luke towards the stove and smiled at him, "Feel better now that you know my Grandpa's not gonna kill you?"

Luke smirked, "Well there is still the chance that he'll send assassins over once everyone leaves."

Rory smirked, "I think you're safe. If he didn't kill my Dad when she was pregnant with me or with what he did now…" She sighed and then shrugged, "I think you're safe."

Luke smiled, "I guess you're right…" He cleared his throat and looked at her out of the corner of his eye, "You sure you're okay with Jess being here?"

Rory smiled at him, "I promise. Jess and I are friends…and besides I'm glad he's here for the wedding. There's no one else that should be your best man."

Luke nodded, "Okay. Well…I just want you to know that if you ever do feel uncomfortable by it, I'll understand. Just let me know. I'm not just here to take care of your Mom and the new baby…I want to be there for you too."

Rory smiled, "You always have been Luke…I've never had to worry about that."

He nodded slowly, "Okay then…just wanted to be clear."

She smiled, "I'm glad you did."

He nodded once more and then grabbed the plates to begin serving. Rory followed behind him and they all ate together for one of the last times in this house.

_  
Later that night, Emily and Richard said their goodbyes and TJ had to drag Liz back to their own house to relieve the babysitter. Jess and Luke were talking in the living room as Lorelai and Rory discussed last minute wedding details.

"So the night before the wedding we're staying here together right?" Lorelai asked with a smile, "I thought we could order the works from Al's Pancake world and rent all our favorite movies and just have one last junk food, movie marathon in our first home."

Rory smiled, "It sounds perfect."

"It's strange to think in a few days this won't be our house anymore…" Lorelai said swallowing the lump in her throat.

Rory smiled sadly, "Yeah…it is. But this next chapter of our life is going to be great Mom. You're going to be so busy you won't have time to miss our old life."

Lorelai laughed, "I think you're probably right about that…"

Rory smiled, "And besides…the new family that's moving in here seems really nice. I think they will take good care of it."

Lorelai nodded, "I do too."

"Hey…I hate to interrupt." Jess said clearing his throat as he walked over to them, "But I uh…was wondering if I could steal Rory away for a minute? We have some things to discuss in regards to the reception and stuff…"

"You better not be planning anything to embarrass us…" Luke said with a groan, "If you start pulling out old pictures just remember I was there for most of your childhood buddy. I've got quite a few embarrassing pictures to get back at you at your own wedding someday."

Jess laughed, "Don't' worry…nothing embarrassing."

Lorelai smiled, "I'd love to see naked baby pictures of Luke! He has hidden them so well. I can't find any!"

"That's because I burned them all years ago." Luke said with a smirk, "No one will ever find any!"

Lorelai pouted, "Spoil sport…"

Everyone laughed and Luke put his hand out to her, "Come on crazy lady…you and the munchkin need rest. We have a busy few days coming up and I refuse to let you sleep through our wedding day."

Lorelai jumped up and took his hand, "Not a chance in the world that could happen."

"Mom, you haven't had any coffee in weeks…there is a very real possibility that could happen." Rory said with a laugh.

Lorelai shrugged, "I actually feel great. Despite the crazy hormones I have a lot of energy. I think I'm just so excited for everything it's making me forget my body is missing my precious caffeine."

"So does that mean once the baby is born you won't go back to drinking that crap?" Luke asked hopefully.

Lorelai laughed and patted his chest, "That's a funny one babe. Don't you remember that you already promised to pump it through my IV as soon as the kid pops out?"

Luke laughed, "Someday…someday I'm getting you to stop drinking it for good."

"In your dreams buddy." She said walking up the stairs, "Sleep well you two. And don't do anything inappropriate because remember you are technically step cousins in a few days. Sorry if we ruined any plans you had of reconciliation but we're older so…" She stuck her tongue out at them and bounded up the stairs.

Luke only laughed and followed her, "Goodnight guys. See you in the morning."

Rory and Jess watched them walk upstairs and smiled after them, when they were gone Jess turned towards her. "So…how are you?"

Rory smiled, "I'm good. I don't know if Luke told you but I'm moving to New York City the day after the wedding. I got an internship at the Times and I start right away."

Jess beamed at her, "Rory that's great! I was wondering if you were mad at me because I haven't heard from you in awhile. But now I know you've just been really busy."

Rory nodded, "I know. I'm sorry I haven't written you back lately. There's just been so much going on between me moving and the engagement…and the trial before that."

Jess nodded, "Luke told me about it…at least some of it. How have you been handing that? I mean I can't imagine it was easy…no matter what he's done he is still your Dad."

Rory sighed and shifted in her seat, "It hasn't been easy. He's tried to call a few times but I really have nothing to say to him. My Mom keeps saying that she will understand if I still want a relationship with him but I can't imagine letting him back into my life. I can't forgive him for what he did…"

"I can understand that." Jess said nodding, "But I guess in a way Luke has always been kind of a Dad to you."

Rory nodded, "Yeah…he has." She paused, "But enough about me…how have you been?"

Jess took a deep breath, "I've been really good. I'm working on another book…and uh…" He cleared his throat spoke softly, "I've been seeing someone…"

Rory smiled, "Jess…you don't have to be nervous about that. If you met someone I think that's great. It's been a long time since we've been together…and besides like my Mom pointed out we're technically gonna be related now."

Jess grimaced, "Yeah…that is kinda weird when you think about it."

"We shouldn't be all that surprised by it. My Mom and Luke getting together has been a long time coming…way before we even became a couple." She said with a laugh. "I still can't believe how damn stubborn they both are."

Jess laughed, "Yeah…Luke gets stuck in his ways. As soon as I moved here I knew he loved your Mom but he just didn't think he was good enough for her. I hated that..."

"Yeah, I'll never get why he thought that. But I guess it doesn't really matter now…the wedding is just days away and this time its going to actually happen no matter what." She said with a smile, "But what did you want to talk to me about for the reception?"

"Well…I'm not really good at speeches. I know the best man is supposed to do one but mine will probably be short and simple." He said with a shrug, "But I was wondering if you wanted to go in on a gift together."

Rory smiled, "That's a good idea. I haven't been able to think of anything for them and I'm actually starting to get nervous. It has to be good…"

Jess nodded, "They have both done a hell of a lot for us. But…I can't think of anything either."

"Well why don't we sleep on it and talk some more tomorrow?" She asked, "I'm exhausted…so much packing lately."

Jess nodded, "Sure. If I don't get home soon my Mom will start calling every five minutes. She's so happy I'm staying with them…"

Rory smiled, "She misses you…"

"Yeah…I know. But she seems happy with TJ. It will be nice to get to spend sometime with my sister while I'm here too." He said with a shrug as he stood up.

Rory smiled, "Do you actually call her Doula?"

Jess laughed, "Well I figured I could call her by her middle name…but then my Mom informed me her middle name is Gary because that's apparently TJ's real name."

Rory started to laugh, "Oh God…that poor girl."

He smirked, "I know. I'll have to think f something cooler for her to go by. I'll let you know when I figure it out…"

She smiled, "Great." She watched him start to walk towards the door and she called out to him again, "Hey Jess?"

He turned slowly when he reached the door, "Yeah?"

"Does she treat you right?" Rory said with a small smile, "Because if she doesn't…I'll kick her ass. You deserve the best."

Jess laughed, "Yeah…she's great. I think you'd actually really like her."

She nodded slowly, "Well then I'll have to meet her someday. Give her the Rory Gilmore stamp of approval."

He smiled, "We'll set up something soon, okay? Now that you'll be in the city too…we can hang out more."

Rory smiled, "I'd like that…"

He reached for the door and opened it slowly, "See ya later Miss Gilmore…"

She smiled, "Night Jess…"

She watched him leave and waited until he pulled out of the driveway before she walked back to her bedroom. She looked around at the mostly empty room and smiled as she sat down on her bed. She reached to her bedside table and pulled out her cell phone and scrolled down to Logan's number. She just couldn't figure out if she wanted to press send or not…

_  
Upstairs, Lorelai was sitting on the edge of the bed applying lotion to her legs. Luke was leaning against the headboard, as he watched her he felt so content. She looked beautiful as she rambled on about how happy she was that her parents now know about the baby and we're okay with it. She was talking about how she couldn't imagine how many things they would buy for the baby. She joked that they would have to add a whole other room onto the house just to fit all the things they would spoil their grandbaby with.

Lorelai stopped talking long enough to turn to look at Luke, her smile faltered when she saw him staring at her. "Am I talking to much again?"

He smiled and shook's his head, "No. I like listening to you talk…especially when you are happy."

She smiled back, "I thought my non stop talking got on your nerves."

He shook his head, "I probably shouldn't admit this but it's actually one of the things I love most about you."

"Really? You always seem so frustrated with me when I go on and on about stuff." She said with a pout.

Luke shrugged, "I mean sometimes it gets a little annoying." He laughed, "But mostly…I love listening to you when you are excited about something. At first…I didn't understand how anyone could be so passionate about things like you were. But I wanted to be more like you after awhile…I wanted to be able to be that happy."

She smiled and moved over to crawl towards him, "And…are you happy now?"

He smiled as she straddled his hips, "So happy…"

"Happy enough to ramble?" She asked as she kissed his lips softly.

Luke laughed, "I think I did ramble when your parents were here…"

"You were so cute when you looked so nervous." She said cupping his face with her hands, "But my Dad really likes you…my Mom too. I'm' sorry it took them so long to come around to you but I know they like you more than they have liked any other guy I introduced them too."

"Yeah well the other guys you dated were all chumps." He said with a groan, "I better rank higher than them all."

Lorelai laughed, "I love you…"

He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her, "Well I love you too…"

She took a deep breath and looked down at her stomach, "I had a dream last night about the baby…"

"Oh yeah?" He asked as he began to rub circles along her back.

She smiled, "Yeah…we were sitting on the front porch of the new house after work. And…you were sitting on the stairs and you had our baby in your arms…and you were talking to her."

"Her?" Luke said with a small smile, "So it was a girl?"

Luke nodded, "Yeah…you kept calling her Elise…and you were telling her all about our family. Stuff about April and Rory…about you and me. And I was just sitting there watching and I remember I couldn't stop smiling…"

"Elise…I like that name." He said smiling up at her, "Elise Danes…it sounds nice."

She shrugged, "If it is a girl we don't have to name her that…"

Luke shook his head, "I like it…"

She smiled and took a deep breath, "I just…I can't wait to see you with our baby. I can't wait to be in our home…together as a family."

"Me either…" He said with a happy sigh, "To be honest with you…I was alone for so long I guess I just thought I'd always be alone. I thought I'd always live above the Diner and just take care of myself…its not what I wanted but I just figured that's the way it would be."

"You deserve a family Luke…you deserve to be happy. And I still don't know why you picked me to give it to you…but you did." She said with a shrug as her eyes welled up with tears, "And God I am so thankful that you did."

"Hey…" He whispered reaching out to wipe away her tears, "What's this for?"

She laughed, "I cant help it…its like I have a never ending supply of tears at the moment. And I'm so happy Luke…so happy. This is everything I have wanted."

"Well as long as they are happy tears…I can live with it." He said leaning forward to kiss her. "The days are winding down…you ready to no longer be Lorelai Gilmore?"

"Am I ready?" She scoffed, "Hell yeah I am! I can't wait to be Mrs. Backwards Baseball cap…"

He chuckled, "Are you going to write that on the marriage license?"

She shrugged, "Would you prefer Mrs. Diner lady?"

He shook his head, "I'd prefer Mrs. Lorelai Gilmore Danes…"

Her smile grew, "That sounds perfect…"

She nodded slowly, "But…can you still sometimes call me Mrs. Backwards baseball cap?"

He laughed and rolled her over on the bed, "You're crazy…"

She smiled and reached to the bedside table and grabbed his hat before placing it back on his head, "Think you can keep it on while we make love?"

"Is that a challenge?" He asked reaching over to push his hands under her shirt.

"It's a request…" Lorelai whispered huskily looking up at him.

He chuckled and shook his head down to kiss her lips softly. Their family was surrounding them and happy for not only their marriage but also the new baby on the way. It had been a crazy few months, but neither of them could have been happier. It had been a long time coming…they knew now they were meant to be together. And no one was going to come between them again…

* * *

**So...what did you think? Let me know and send in a review! I will try and update within the next few days. Thanks! **


	20. Chapter 19

**Hey guys, here is the second to last chapter! This is the day before the wedding. The last chapter will obviously be the wedding and then I am still trying to decide about a sequel or not...but I will let you know when I post the next and final chapter! I hope you enjoy this chapter :) Thanks again for all your reviews and support! **

* * *

The day before the wedding was suddenly upon them. Lorelai was asleep in her bed, the sun started to shine in through the window and her eyes began to flutter open. The corners of her lips turned up into a smile when she saw that Luke was staring back at her.

"Hi…" She whispered in a hoarse voice full of sleep.

He smiled and reached over to brush a curl out of her face, "Hi. Its your last full day as Lorelai Gilmore…how do you feel about that?"

Her smile grew and she stretched her arms out around her, "Mmm…I feel happier than I have ever been."

He smiled and leaned forward to try and kiss her, "Good."

She pulled away, "Mmm no you can't kiss me! I probably have horrible morning breath!"

He chuckled, "Lorelai…we are getting married tomorrow. I'm gonna have to deal with morning breath and so are you. Otherwise we're going to have a very kissless marriage."

"Well that wouldn't be good…" She said with a small frown.

He smiled, "No. It wouldn't. But seeing as I get up way earlier than you most days anyway I guess we won't have many morning breath issues."

She shook her head, "No way. Once we're married I expect you to wake me up every morning before you go to work so I can say goodbye properly."

Luke laughed loudly, "Yeah right…that will last for all of a week and then you'll get pissed at me for getting you up so early."

She laughed back, "Yeah…you're probably right."

He scooted closer to her, "So…can I kiss you now or what?"

She smiled and lifted her hand up to her mouth and breathed in, "Eh…I guess it's not so bad." She smirked at him, "Lay one on me mister!"

He chuckled as he pulled her closer and pressed his lips against hers, "I love you crazy lady."

She smiled against his lips and pecked him back before pulling away to snuggle into the crook of his neck, "Mmm…I love you too Burger Boy."

Luke held her closer and rubbed her back, "Did you ever think we'd actually make it here? I mean I always hoped we would…"

She smiled against him and nuzzled his collarbone gently, "To be honest I never thought I'd marry anyone. I didn't think anyone would want me…"

He squeezed her gently, "I want you. I've always wanted you…"

She pulled away a little to look at him, "Can I tell you something?"

Luke stared at her for a moment, "Lorelai if this is the time you are choosing to tell me that you are secretly in love with TJ or that you want to become a man…I'd say you have very poor timing."

Lorelai burst out laughing and rolled away from him, "Oh my God!"

He smirked at her and tried not to laugh, "I'm serious Lorelai…if you drop some bombshell like that on me things might take an ugly turn."

She continued to laugh and turned back towards him, "You are crazy…"

"Must be all the time I am spending with you." He said laughing as he pulled her closer, "You're crazy is turning into my crazy…"

"Well once we are officially married it could get really bad. Plus we're having a kid together so just think what we're about to create!" She said playfully pinching his side.

He groaned, "God help us…"

"I think it's more like God help the world…" She said as she continued to laugh.

Luke smiled and kissed her lips again, "I suppose you're right." He kissed her again and pulled away. "But really…what did you want to tell me?"

She let laughter subside for a moment and then she cupped his face in her hands, "Do you remember that night you told me that you and Nicole got married?"

Luke tensed for a moment and licked his lips, "Yes…"

She ran her hand along his stubble slowly, "I felt like my heart had burst out of my chest. I knew I had no right to feel angry or jealous…but God I did. I was so upset Luke…I felt like my world was crashing down around me."

"Lorelai…I married her because I thought I'd never have a chance with you. I married her because I was drunk and it just happened. But it never meant anything…" He whispered.

She stared at him for a moment, "At Rory's graduation you asked me if I thought it was okay to go…we're you asking me if I cared?"

He shrugged, "In a way I think I was…"

She sighed, "I should have said something…but I didn't know how."

He nodded, "Lorelai it's okay…"

"And then that night we broke the bells you kept asking me why I cared…and I had the words on the tip of my tongue." She swallowed hard, "But I just…I couldn't force them out. I couldn't open my heart to you knowing you were married to someone else and it wouldn't matter."

"It did matter…" Luke whispered squeezing her hips gently, "It always mattered. You always mattered…I think I knew then but I was all screwed up. I knew I didn't love Nicole but I didn't know if I could walk away…I was afraid to be alone."

She sighed and leaned forward to kiss him again gently, "I know we said to forget about the past…but I just wanted you to know that I have cared about you for a lot longer than I have been able to admit. I always pretended like I didn't…and you were so honest with me about the horoscope. I just…I want you to know that you've always been the one Luke. I just…was too afraid to tell you. You have always meant so much to me and I was afraid I'd lose you…" She laughed sadly, "And then I did…"

"We're getting married tomorrow. That's all that matters, right?" He asked looking deep into her eyes. "I love you and you love me…and we're getting married."

She smiled at him, "We're getting married…"

He nodded slowly, "And having a baby…"

"Well I think I'm the one actually having the baby…" Luke chuckled and she smiled, "But yes technically we're having a baby together…"

"Lorelai…" He said as he continued to chuckle.

She smiled, "After tomorrow I get to wake up with you every morning…and go to sleep with you every night. I get to be loved by you…" Her eyes welled up with tears, "God I am so lucky…"

He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her, "I will love you forever. That I can promise you. I can't promise that it will always be easy…or that we won't have hard times. But I promise that no matter what I will love you…every part of you. Always."

Her smile grew, "Where's Archie? You're practically saying your vows now. Lets make it official!"

He smiled, "Believe me, I would if I could. I don't want to wait anymore. But I think your mother would actually kill us if we did that."

"Not to mention the fact that it would be a little awkward since we are both naked. And he can't ever see a naked woman right?" Lorelai asked with a smirk.

"Archie is married…Priests are the ones that can't get married. But yes I do suppose it would make it a little awkward for him." He said with a chuckle.

"Can you promise to always laugh like that? I love hearing you laugh…" She said with a dreamy smile, "It makes me so happy."

"I'll do my best…" He said with a soft smile.

Lorelai smiled and then glanced over Luke's shoulder to see the clock, "We have a lot to do today…"

Luke nodded, "Yeah…"

"But we don't get to sleep together tonight…" She whispered with a pout, "I'm going to miss you. We haven't had a night apart really since we got back together."

He nodded slowly, "Well the good news is we don't have to spend another night apart after tonight…"

Her pout quickly turned into a smile again, "That is really good news…"

He sighed, "But the bad news is…we only have about thirty minutes left of uninterrupted alone time before we have to face the day."

She smirked, "Well then…what are you waiting for buddy? This is your last chance to fool around with an unmarried woman!"

Luke laughed, "I personally can't wait to make love to my wife…but I would like to fool around with Lorelai Gilmore one more time."

"Better make it good Mr. Danes…I need something to remember once I become an old maid and my hubby refuses to touch me." She said with a wink.

Luke chuckled again and shook his head, "Well hold onto your hat there little lady…its gonna be a bumpy ride."

She giggled, "Mr. Danes! Be gentle with me! I'm so innocent!"

Luke growled and rolled her onto her back before attacking her lips with his. She held him close and reveled in the knowledge that tomorrow he would be hers forever.

* * *

Later that evening, they had the rehearsal at the Inn and Sookie cooked a big dinner for the whole dinner party and the Gilmores. They gathered together in the Inn dining room and ate and laughed, telling old stories about the soon to be married couple. Then they began to split off into their different groups, Luke led Lorelai to the front door where they had shared their first kiss.

She glanced around and smiled, "Well this seems awfully familiar…"

He nodded and put his hands on her hips, pulling her closer. "Yes. It does. But this time around I'm hoping that we don't yell at each other and that a naked Kirk doesn't interrupt us…"

Lorelai laughed, "Well I could put up a fight if you want me too…but I'd rather do without the naked Kirk as well."

Luke shook his head, "No fighting please…just kissing."

She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, "Just kissing…"

"We could sneak up to room 7 if you want to do more…" He mumbled against her lips.

She smirked, "Nope. No more goods for you until you put a ring on it tomorrow mister! You had your last chance with THE Lorelai Gilmore this morning…"

"And what a chance it was…" He said with a proud smirk, "I think I did some of my best work…"

She smiled, "I can't argue with that…it was pretty damn impressive."

"Well I was highly motivated." He said with a smirk, "After years of dreaming about THE Lorelai Gilmore I had to make the last one count…"

She shook her head, "God I love you…"

"Good. Because I love you too." He said with a smirk as he leaned forward to kiss her, "Besides…if you didn't this whole getting married thing would be a little pointless."

She smiled and gently played with the hair at the nape of his neck, "You know…I remember feeling so scared that night when you kissed me. But nothing had ever felt as right as that…"

"_YOU _were scared?" He said with a chuckle, "I figured I was about to get slapped or worse! I didn't know what the hell you were going to do. But…I just couldn't wait anymore to kiss you…"

"Well I'm glad you didn't…" She whispered, "I'm glad you made your move."

"Me too…" He whispered rubbing her hips gently, "Sorry it took us so long to actually get here…"

She shrugged, "Better late than never…"

He nodded once, "I suppose you're right…"

"Alright you two…" Rory said with a smirk, "It's time to say goodnight. Mom and I have plans! You have the rest of your life to play kissy face…"

Luke laughed and tried to pull away but Lorelai only held him closer, "Can't he stay with us tonight? Please!?"

"No…" Rory said with a laugh, "He is spending his last night in his apartment with April and Jess and you and I are spending our last night at the house. You know this…besides it bad luck. And you two don't need anymore bad luck!"

Lorelai stuck her tongue out at him, "Meanie!"

Rory rolled his eyes, "You're hopeless…"

Luke smiled, "Give me 30 more seconds and then she's all yours…"

Rory nodded and looked at her cell phone, "You're on the clock. Starting now!" She smiled playfully at them and then turned her back to give them some time alone.

Luke pulled Lorelai closer by her hips again and smiled, "I guess it's only right that our first kiss as a dating couple started here…and so will our last one. Tomorrow once I kiss you…you'll be my wife."

Lorelai's face beamed, "Your wife…"

"Yep. All mine." He said with a proud smile, "And it's about damn time…"

Lorelai laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck, "Shut up and kiss me Burger Boy…our times almost up."

He smirked and pulled her closer until their lips met in a soft yet passionate kiss. Lorelai melted into him and pressed her body against his, relishing in the feel of being in his arms. This very spot had been the beginning of everything and in a way it was ending something too. But at least this time it was also paving way for a whole new future that they got to share together…the best kind of ending.

She pulled away and rested her forehead against his, "I'll see you tomorrow?"

Luke nodded once, "I'll be the one in the monkey suit at the end of the aisle."

Lorelai giggled, "And I'll be the one in the pretty, pretty white dress…"

He closed his eyes and breathed her in, "You will look so beautiful. You always do."

She smiled and leaned forward to kiss him, "I love you."

He kissed her back softly, "I love you too Miss Gilmore…"

She smiled and pulled away and smiled that smile she only saved for him as she held his hand until she couldn't hold it any longer. He smiled at her as Rory grabbed her arm and led her towards the car and he chuckled as Lorelai leaned out the window blowing kisses to him as she went.

He didn't care that he looked like a love struck teenager. He didn't care that his nephew and daughter were watching the scene from afar. He didn't care that at any moment anyone could snap a picture of that goofy grin on his face and forever shatter his tough guy exterior. All he cared about was that in less than 24 hours, Lorelai Gilmore would finally be his wife…

He took a deep breath as he watched the jeep drive away in the distance. Then he walked down the steps and joined his daughter and nephew who were waiting by the truck.

"So I'm assuming from that little display of affection I don't need to pack up the truck tonight and plan a route for us to Oklahoma?" Jess said with a smirk.

Luke glared at him, "If that is your subtle way of asking me if I want to run…the answer is hell no."

Jess smiled and wrapped an arm around his Uncle's shoulders, "Smart man…"

Luke smiled back and held the door open for April who climbed into the middle seat of the truck. Then Jess climbed in beside her as Luke walked around towards the driver seat. They drove away from the Inn and back to the apartment for Luke's last night as a bachelor.

When they were upstairs, April quickly ran and picked out one of her favorite board games; Monopoly and set it up ontop of a box that had replaced the old coffee table. Most of Luke's things were all in boxes except for the two beds and kitchen supplies. Luke, Jess and April sat around the box and began to play together enjoying the comfortable quiet.

"So…" April whispered, "What do I call Lorelai once you guys are married?"

Luke smiled at her, "You can just call her Lorelai still…she doesn't expect you to call her Mom or anything. She doesn't want to replace the Mom you already have."

April nodded, "I know. I guess I was just curious if I should call her something different." She paused for a moment again and then smiled as she took her turn, "You know…I really am glad that you guys got back together. You always seem a lot happier with her around…"

"When you are older you will understand what makes him so damn happy." Jess said with a smirk.

Luke's face reddened, "Jesus Jess!"

"What? She doesn't know what I'm talking about." He said with a chuckle.

April smiled, "You mean he's happier cuz he's getting laid…"

"April!" Luke said with a shocked face as Jess fell on his side convulsing with laughter. "Where did you hear that?"

April laughed, "You and Mom have to talk to more about what you both say to me. She's pretty open about stuff…she's told me all about sex. I mean did you really not think I knew how Lorelai got pregnant?"

Jess continued to laugh as Luke stumbled to find the right words to use, "I…I mean I didn't…I just figured you'd…" He sighed, "I don't know! I don't want to think about what you may or may not know regarding…"

Jess and April waited for him to finish his sentence but when he didn't they both said in unison, "Sex."

Luke grimaced, "Aw Geez…"

Jess laughed and clapped his Uncle on the back, "Come on Uncle Luke…you can say it. It's not a dirty word. Say SEX."

Luke glared at him, "Okay this conversation is over now…taking your damn turn and someone change the freaking subject."

April laughed and looked at her cousin, "You were right. It is a lot of fun to make him uncomfortable. His face is like fifteen different shades of red right now!"

"It was my favorite past time when I was living here…" Jess said with a smirk.

Luke rolled his eyes, "Gee…thanks for all the love and support the night before my wedding you too."

April smiled, "Sorry Dad…we're only joking around. You know we really are happy for you."

Jess nodded in agreement, "Yeah…I mean you and Lorelai have been dancing around each other for years. I knew that the moment I came to Stars Hollow. I always figured this would happen eventually and I am happy for you…for both of you."

"It's not awkward since you dated Rory?" Luke asked curiously.

Jess shrugged, "I mean maybe a little but…we're just friends now. I want her to be happy…and I think she wants me to be happy too. Besides I have Meg now and she's really great…I wish she could have come this weekend but she couldn't get the time off of work."

Luke nodded, "Well I'm sure that Lorelai will want to make a trip to New York soon to see Rory. We will have to set up a time to get together then. I'd like to meet her too. She seems like she's been good for you…you seem settled."

Jess smiled, "She's been great…doesn't take any of my BS."

"You can say bullshit in front of me you know…" April said with a smirk as she moved her piece around the game board.

Jess chuckled, "Man you are in so much trouble with this one…" He said pointing a finger at his young cousin.

Luke groaned, "Trust me…I know."

"And to think you have another kid on the way that is half Lorelai Gilmore…" He shook his head, "Man you are so screwed."

"I have a feeling my hair will be falling out quite soon…" Luke said with a groan.

Jess chuckled again, "I wouldn't worry too much. I mean Lorelai is obviously a great Mom…look how great Rory turned out." He cleared his throat nervously and shrugged, "And you did a hell of a lot for me…I wouldn't be where I am today without you."

Luke's face flushed and he looked down at the dice in his hand, "Oh well…I mean you're my nephew, I was just trying to help you and your Mom out."

Jess nodded, "Right…yeah I know."

"I don't think it was that big of a deal…" Luke said still afraid to meet his eyes, "I just gave you a place to crash for awhile…that's all."

Jess smirked and said sarcastically, "Yeah…that's all you did."

Luke stole a glance at him for a moment and then turned away again as did Jess. April watched the scene before her as she collected her money from the bank and shook her head at them both.

"Geez…no wonder it took you eight years to tell Lorelai you liked her. You're like a blubbering baboon talking about emotions." April said with a chuckle.

Jess laughed again and Luke only rolled his eyes, "Alright…enough of lets pick on Dad okay? Can I take my turn or what?"

April smiled, "Sure…go ahead Dad…"

Luke returned her soft smile and rolled the dice before taking his turn. He looked around his small apartment as they continued to play the game and thought about what it looked like when it was his fathers office. He remembered the first night he had spent here alone and the countless nights after that.

Part of him had started to believe that he would grow old up here all alone. He thought he wasn't worth of love, that he didn't have a chance in hell at happiness. And yet somehow, here he was the night before his wedding to the love of his life. It was sad to think this chapter of his life was over but he couldn't wait to see what the next chapter had in store…

* * *

Back at the house, Lorelai and Rory climbed the porch steps arm in arm as they walked to the front door. Lorelai turned the knob and they walked in for what would be there last night in their very first home. They walked through the foyer into the living room that now was full of boxes and the only pieces of furniture that were left was a mattress and an old TV set sitting ontop of a box at the foot of the bed.

Rory smiled, "It's like déjà vu…except on our first night here we didn't have a TV yet."

Lorelai smiled, "We slept on a mattress in here for almost four months before I mustered up the courage to ask Luke to help me move it in upstairs. I couldn't afford to hire movers…"

Rory smiled, "I remember…Luke was horrified that we had slept on the floor for that long. Remember how he brought over old stuff from his storage unit for us to use because he knew we couldn't afford a lot of furniture at the time."

Lorelia smiled as her eyes welled up with tears, "I remember…he has always taken care of us. Always…"

"And he always will…" Rory said as she gave her Mom's arm a squeeze.

Lorelai nodded once and then took off her heels and plopped down on the mattress. "I am so exhausted…and yet I could stay up all night and talk to you."

Rory smiled and plopped down next to her, "Just like the good old days…"

Nodding once, Lorelai turned towards her daughter and smiled, "Are you all ready to move? I feel like I haven't been able to help you much with all the wedding preparations…I feel bad."

Rory shook her head, "Don't. Grandma and Grandpa have been helping a lot, in fact I'm pretty sure when I get to my apartment Grandma will already have had it decorated for me. You know how she is…"

Lorelai smiled, "You're probably right." She paused and looked down at her hands that were clasped in her lap. "But I do feel bad that I won't be there the day you move in. Luke and I could probably still push back the day of departure for our honey moon. We will come help you move in…and then take off."

Rory shook her head, "No. I don't want you to do that. You and Luke have spent so much time taking care of me…now its time you focus on your relationship. Besides, you won't have much time as husband and wife seeing as the little one will be here before we know it. Go enjoy your alone time…" She said giving her mother a nudge.

"Yeah I guess you're right…we'll just have a few short months of alone time before the munchkin comes along." She said as she placed an affectionate hand over her growing belly.

Rory smiled, so glad to see her mother this happy. "I still can't believe you have a baby in there…"

Lorelai chuckled, "It is pretty weird…and its been awhile since I was pregnant with you. In a way it all feels new again…"

Rory nodded, "But you're feeling okay right? The Doctors said you are healthy and so is the baby?"

Lorelai nodded, "Yep. We made sure it was safe for me to fly and Grandma found a great doctor down in St. John just in case…but everyone says I have nothing to worry about."

"Good. That's good…" Rory said with a slow nod, "I really am happy for you…I hope you know that."

Lorelai smiled and reached for her daughters hand, giving it a gentle squeeze she whispered. "I know kid. I know…"

Rory swallowed the lump in her throat and began to speak again, "I know how alone you felt for a long time…how much you wanted to find someone to share your life with."

Lorelai felt her own tears burning and she shook her head, "Only sometimes honey. The truth is I realized I had you to share my life with…that was as good as having any man beside me. Less stressful and less heartache…"

"Not all the time…" Rory whispered, "I caused my fair share of stress and heartache…"

Lorelai shook her head, "It doesn't matter. None of that matters…I could sit here and list the million and one times that I screwed up with you but it won't change anything. It won't change how much you mean to me and how grateful I am that I had you when I did…"

Rory cocked her head to the side, "You don't ever wish things had turned out differently for you? You don't wish you could have gone away to school like a normal kid?"

Lorelai smirked, "To be fair…I was never, ever a normal kid. From the day I was born they basically created a whole new category for me. There was boy, girl and Lorelai Gilmore."

Rory couldn't help but laugh, "I think Grandpa told me that once…yes."

She smiled back, "But truthfully, no. Maybe when I first found out I was pregnant I thought about what things I could do later. But once I held you in my arms…I knew you were the best thing that would ever happen to me. You made me want to be better…you made me want to work hard and make something of myself."

"You've always worked hard Mom…I always knew no matter what you would always take care of me. You sacrificed so much to make sure that I was okay…I didn't really realize it as a kid but I do now. I hope you know how thankful I am for all that you did and still do…" Rory whispered.

Lorelai couldn't hold the tears in any longer and she shook her head quickly, "Oh God…I'm already emotional thinking this is our last night together in this house. But now with the baby I feel like I could cry a freaking river."

Rory smiled, "We can stop talking about this stuff if you want…"

Lorelai stared at her for a moment and then took a deep breath, "I want you to remember that no matter where you go…no matter how old you are or who else may join our family…" She paused and took another shaky breath, "That I will always love you as much as I did the day you were born. Whatever you need…you can count on me."

Rory gave in to her own water works and fell against her mother and they both cried both happy and sad tears together. They stayed like that for as long as they both needed to before pulling apart and getting ready for bed for the last time in their perfect little house.

When they were settled, they cuddled together on their make shift bed and turned on the TV. Lorelai smiled when the familiar music from Charlie and the Chocolate factor played through the speakers.

"What a classic…" Lorelai whispered as she settled into her pillows.

Rory nodded and reached beside her to pull up a large box, "I know. And I made sure to get all the fixings to last us through the night."

Lorelai peered down into the box and cheered, "Red Vines, cheettos, Milk Duds, Oreos and beer?"

Rory smiled, "Well I had to improvise and make it root beer…gotta preserve the little one's brain cells at least until it comes out. Then we can rot them away with candy and too much TV."

Lorelai chuckled, "That does seem fair…at least give him or her a fighting chance while we can."

Rory laughed and popped off the caps of the bottles and handed her mother one, "Here's to the start of something new and exciting…and the end of the best life in our little old house."

"I'll drink to that…" Lorelai said as she clinked her bottle with her daughters and then turned back to the movie.

They sang all the songs, and ate their weight in junk food before an exhausted Rory fell asleep beside her. The last scene of the movie played as Lorelai quietly pulled herself off the bed and reached for her cell phone before tip toeing to the front porch and sitting down on the top step.

She glanced around her yard and smiled at her first ever home and then pressed the 2 on speed dial. She waited patiently, fully expecting to hear a recorded message she was ready to leave a message when a familiar husky voice answered.

"Hello? Lorelai? Why are you calling? Is something wrong? Are you getting cold feet?" Luke asked in a deep nervous voice.

She smiled to herself, "I'm sorry if I woke you…I didn't think you'd actually have your phone on. I was just going to leave you a message…"

"For what? Tell me you were already half way to India by now to become some sort of Indian Princess?" He joked.

She laughed, "God no. You know I'd never make it in that heat! If I was every going to flee to somewhere…it would have to be somewhere cool like Florence or Athens where I could eat my weight in delicious food everyday and ogle perfectly sculpted young men!"

Luke rolled his eyes, "Nice…I'll be replaced as your food provider and as your sex object."

Lorelai laughed harder, "Luke…you could easily be replaced as my food provider but never as my sex object."

He chuckled, "At least I know you love my body…"

"But only as long as you keep your six pack…I was serious about that part." She said with a joking smile.

Luke grumbled, "Yeah, yeah…"

Lorelai took a deep breath and looked around her yard once more and listened to the soft steady breathing on the other end of the phone. "Are Jess and April asleep?"

"Yeah. Jess crashed on the couch and April is passed out in her bed…we had a fun night though. It's weird sometimes…I forget just how grown up April actually is. And even more so I forget how damn smart she is!" He said with a chuckle, "Nothing gets by her…"

"Yeah she is an amazing young girl…" She said with a smile. "You should be proud of that."

Luke shrugged, "I only wish I could say I was involved more…"

"You did the best you could with the time you were given." Lorelai said, "That's all anyone can ask of you…" She paused, "Besides, we have a new one on the way and you'll be involved from day one."

Luke nodded, "Damn right I will."

She smiled and pulled her sweater around her tighter feeling the familiar signs of fall coming in, "I hope you know that I'd never run from you…at least not again."

"I know. And I hope that you know that even if you did…I'd run right after you this time around." He said with an honest, deep voice. "I will never let you go again."

She sighed happily, "I was calling to tell you that I loved you."

He smiled, "I believe you told me that earlier at the Inn when we said goodbye…"

Lorelai shrugged, "I know…but I wanted to say it again. I could say it all day if you'd let me."

"I have no objection to that." He said with a proud smirk, "Especially if it was while we were naked in bed…"

Lorelai giggled, "You really are a bad boy Mr. Danes…"

"You like me that way and you know it…" He said in a small whisper, when he heard her laugh again he smiled, "But I am glad to hear you say it…in any context. And…I love you too. I promise I'll be better about saying it…"

"You already are." She said with a happy smile, "Every time you do say it I swear my heart skips a beat…"

"I know the feeling…" He whispered back, "Did you call for any other reason?"

"Well I wouldn't be opposed to a little phone sex…" She said with a chuckle.

Luke groaned, "You would say something like that while my daughter and nephew are in the same room as me."

She giggled, "Aren't you glad that you'll be moving into a house with walls and separate rooms and everything? We can have all the phone sex we want!"

Luke laughed, "Well I hope we'll be having regular sex once we are actually married and living together…"

She smiled, "Oh we will. Trust me! Although once the baby is born…we won't have as much time anymore."

Luke nodded, "That's true…but that's okay too. I can't wait to be a parent with you."

"Can I get that in writing? You may be changing your tune once you are waking up every half hour to a screaming, poopy little baby!" She teased.

"Nope. You're getting up for all of that crap." He said with a joke, "No pun intended by the way."

"Oh no way mister! I plan to take full advantage of the fact that I have a partner this time around. You will be doing equal the amount of work as me." She said sternly.

He chuckled, "I'll do it happily."

She smiled, "Me too…"

They sat in silence for a minute, enjoying the fact that they felt so close even when they were in separate places.

Finally Luke looked over at the clock and said, "It's officially past midnight…"

Lorelai's smile grew, "Then it is officially our wedding day…"

"Is it bad luck to talk on the phone the day of your wedding too?" He teased.

Lorelai shook her head, "Nah…I don't think so."

"Maybe not…but I do think if you don't get your allotted 8 hours of sleep you will be a crank pot all day tomorrow." He joked.

She sighed, "You're probably right…but I don't want to hang up the phone."

"The sooner you go to the sleep…the sooner we'll be married. It will go by faster. Ya know?" He said with a happy smile.

"I can't wait…" She whispered softly.

"Me either." He said softly, "You think you're gonna call me again or should I turn off my phone?"

Lorelai smiled, "Turn off your phone…I want to leave that message I was gonna leave anyway. But don't you dare listen to it until tomorrow before the wedding!"

"What more could you have to say? We've been talking all day and we're on the phone now. Just say it now." He said with a laugh.

She pouted and she knew he could sense it on the other end of the phone, "Because I'm trying to be romantic Luke!"

He chuckled, "Alright…leave your message crazy lady."

"You know…if you want to leave a message for me too I wouldn't be upset that you stole my idea." She teased.

"I'm hanging up the phone now Lorelai…" He said as he continued to laugh.

"But Luke…" She whined into the phone.

"I love you. And I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight Miss Gilmore…" He whispered in that husky voice that drove her crazy.

"Goodnight Mr. Danes…" She whispered back, "I love you."

They both hung up the phone and Luke smiled as he rolled over in bed, clicked off his phone and went back to sleep. Lorelai waited a minute and then called his number again to leave him a message. Then she hung up her own phone and stood up, she walked in the front door as quietly as she could and then she walked towards the kitchen. All the appliances were still there, they were leaving them for the new family moving in.

She laughed when she looked at the stove that she never really used, and remembered how it had driven crazy when she dried her socks in it. She looked at the kitchen table, the same table that she had watched Rory draw as a child and later work late into the night on her homework.

She turned towards Rory's bedroom and walked in, she looked around the empty room and thought about how much Rory had grown here. She remembered how excited she was to give her daughter her very own room. She had spent late nights making sure it was decorated perfectly while her daughter slept up in her own bed upstairs. And then, even when the room was finished, for that first six months they spent the night together in Rory's room because they were so used to sleeping together like in the potting shed.

So much had happened to them in this house. They had loved and lost, learned and grown both separately and together. This was the first real home for both of them, and Lorelai did feel a sense of loss knowing she would never again call this home. But she knew deep down that in order to put the past behind her and focus on her future with Luke and their growing family it was time to say goodbye to this chapter of her life.

Though she would miss this place, she couldn't wait to create brand new memories in the beautiful house by the lake. It was the perfect place for them to raise their child together, to watch April and Rory continue to grow and to grow old as a couple. Yes…this was the last night in this home, and it was sad but she couldn't wait to start her new future.

As quietly as she could, she tip toed back into the living room and smiled at Rory who was still fast asleep in bed. In some ways she looked exactly like the little girl that had slept in this very spot that first night in the house. And in other ways, she looked so grown up and really ready to be off on her own. Slowly, she pulled the covers back on the bed and slipped in beside her daughter before drifiting off to a peaceful sleep…

* * *

**So what did you think? Let me know and send in a review! I will try and update soon :) Thanks! **


	21. Chapter 20

**Hi guys! Once again thanks for your patience and all your support! Here is what you have been waiting for...the final chapter! I am still considering making a sequel...no decisions have been made yet. So I guess just keep an eye out for that just in case ;) I hope you like the last chapter! It's a lot longer than previous chapters but I hope its worth it. Enjoy! **

* * *

Lorelai woke up the next morning, her eyes fluttered open as she tried to adjust to her surroundings. She looked around the room and remembered why she was sleeping on a mattress in the middle of her living room. She sat up quickly, stretched and kicked her feet around before standing up to jump up and down on the bed.

"I'm getting married today!" Lorelai screamed causing Rory to jump and then fall out of bed with a loud thunk.

"What the hell?" Rory groaned as she rubbed her head, which she hit on the hardwood floor.

"I'm getting married today! I'm getting married today!" Lorelai continued in a singsong voice, ignoring her daughter's frustration.

Rory sighed and pulled herself up on the mattress, "Yes…I'm aware that you are getting married today. But could you have given me a less painful wake up call? I am going to be your maid of honor and I need to look presentable up on the alter…but now I might have a grapefruit sized lump on my head!"

Lorelai plopped down on the mattress and smiled giddily, "Aww…Luke loves grapefruit!"

Rory chuckled, "I know…"

"He's so healthy." Lorelai said with a happy sigh, "He eats all his fruits and vegetables and works out all the time and God…" she shivered and giggled more, "He has such a sexy body…"

"Oh GOD!" Rory screamed quickly standing up and covering her ears, "Mom I really don't want to hear this!"

"What? I'm just being honest! Luke is the sexiest man I have ever seen." Lorelai said with a shrug.

"I don't want to hear this!" Rory yelled as she started to walk towards the kitchen.

"He has washboard abs…I mean they are literally perfect! I love to trace them with my fingers and lick-" She continued.

"Ahhhh!" Rory yelled as she ran towards her former bedroom and slammed the door, "La la la la la!"

Lorelai laughed and put a hand on her tiny baby bump, "You have the sexiest Daddy ever kid…you better get used to hearing that!"

She giggled and lay back in bed and stared up at the ceiling, she couldn't keep her feet from kicking excitedly on the mattress.

* * *

At the apartment, Luke rolled over and glanced around the apartment and noticed that April and Jess were still fast asleep. He sat up, stretched and then glanced around the place he had called home for his whole adult life. Taking a deep breath, he reached for his cell phone and then quietly tip toed out of the apartment and down into the Diner, which was closed for the day. He quietly made himself a cup of tea before sitting in Lorelai's usual spot at the counter as he flipped open his phone and smiled when he saw he had a voice mail. Lorelai had left the message she had promised to leave after they hung up the night before.

As soon as he heard Lorelai's voice his heart skipped a beat and he wished the hours would go by faster so he could be her husband.

"_Good morning my handsome finance! In a few hours you are going to be my husband…" There was a short pause and he could practically see her lips turning up into a smile, "And I am going to be your wife. __**Your**__ wife. I know we just talked but, Luke…I want you to know just how much I love you. It's hard sometimes…to really express how I feel about you…but you have been my best friend for over a decade. Since the moment I walked into the Diner and met you I have felt safe…you have protected Rory and me since day one and I couldn't love you more for that. Thank you Luke." Her voice cracked and he heard her sniffle, "God I am so lucky to have you…and I still don't know how you have forgiven me for so many things…but I am so thankful for that. I promise that no matter what I will love you Luke. I can't not love you. I don't know how not to love you…you make me so happy. And I can't wait to finally be your wife…" She paused again, "So before this voice machine cuts me off…I just want to say one more thing… get some sleep because you are gonna need it tomorrow night. Goodnight Burger Boy. I'll see you at the alter!"_

Luke chuckled as he pressed the save button on the phone and shut it again. He couldn't stop smiling as he let her words sink in and he sipped at his tea. He heard the creak of the stairs and nodded towards Jess when he saw him push back the curtain.

"Morning…" Luke said watching his nephew walk behind the counter.

Jess nodded back and reached for the coffee pot, "Morning…any cold feet yet?"

Luke smiled and shook his head, "Nope. My feet are far from cold. I'm ready for this."

Jess nodded slowly and leaned his back against the counter as he studied his Uncle for a moment. "Good."

Luke was quiet for a moment before he set his teacup down on the counter, "You know it means a lot for me that you are here…"

Jess glanced down at his cup and nodded slowly, "Sure. Of course I'm here. You asked me to be your best man…and I sure as hell wasn't gonna let TJ screw this up for you. I didn't really have any other choice…"

Luke smirked, "Right…"

Jess looked up again and shrugged, "Besides, I feel like I've been a part of this crazy rollercoaster that is Lorelai and Luke I need to see how it all plays out."

Luke chuckled, "I guess that's true…"

They sat in silence for a few moments before Jess spoke up again, "I knew the day that I got here that you loved her…"

Luke raised an eyebrow in surprise, "You did?"

Jess smirked and raised the cup to his lips so he could take a sip before answering, "Yup. She was the only person you made time for…other than your family. You pretended like she annoyed you but you couldn't take your eyes off of her…it was so obvious."

Luke snorted, "To you but apparently not to Lorelai…I can't really blame her though because I never told her how I felt."

Jess shrugged, "You were scared…and so was she. She's been screwed over a lot in her life Luke…and she counted on you. She was just afraid to lose you as a friend…"

Luke nodded slowly, "I get that…but sometimes it sucks realizing how much time we wasted pretending we didn't feel the way we do."

Jess smiled, "We're Danes men Uncle Luke…we don't express our feelings well. At least not until we are backed up against the wall…And the Gilmore Girls are amazing and intimidating all at the same time…its not so easy to open up to them."

Luke looked at his nephew for a moment, "Yeah I guess you're right…" He took another sip of his tea and then nodded his head towards the staircase, "Is April still asleep?"

"Yup. I figured I'd let her sleep a little while longer until she needs to go start getting ready." Jess said with a shrug.

"Great. Thanks." He paused and looked at the clock, "Do you think you could do me a favor?"

Jess shrugged, "I'm the best man, right? I can't really say no to whatever it is."

Luke chuckled and stood up before walking around the counter, "Think you can run something over to Lorelai for me? She's pretty hell bent on not seeing each other until the ceremony."

"Well it is probably better to be safe than sorry. You don't have the best track record…" Jess teased.

Luke grunted, "Will you do it or not?"

"Sure. Let me just run upstairs and change quick." Jess said turning to walk out of the Diner and back towards the stairs.

Luke poured two cups of coffee in to go cups, grabbed two Chocolate Chip Muffins, picked up a small package from under the counter and then wrote a quick note. By the time he was done Jess was trotting down the stairs again ready to run his errand.

"Any message you need delivered too?" Jess asked shrugging into his jean jacket.

Luke shook his head; "There's a note in there."

Jess took the tray and bag and nodded, "I thought Lorelai couldn't have coffee, isn't it bad for the baby?"

"I think one cup will be okay. And knowing Lorelai she has been up since before the sun so she's going to need some caffeine to make it through the day. Tell her that's the only cup she gets though!" He said pointing at him sternly.

"Man…you really do love her." Jess said with a chuckle as he walked towards the door and exited the Diner.

Luke watched his nephew go and he smiled watching him walk away before he whispered, "Yeah. I do…"

He shook his head as he couldn't keep from smiling and then turned to grab his tea and go back up to the apartment to see April.

* * *

Back at the house, Rory was desperately trying to find coffee anywhere in the house. Lorelai was dancing around the living room to "Going to the Chapel" and singing at the top of her lungs.

Rory groaned, "Would you turn that down!?"

Lorelai skipped into the room and smiled at her daughter, "No. I will not! It's my wedding day! This is the one day in my life when I can do whatever I want."

Rory rolled her eyes, "Mom you've always done whatever you wanted."

Lorelai shrugged and turned towards the stereo and used the clicker to turn it down. "Yes, but today of all days you can't protest!"

Rory laughed, "Fine. But is there seriously no coffee in this house?"

Lorelai shook her head, "Luke dumped it all so that I wouldn't be tempted. Sorry kid! You'll have to go to the Diner if you want it…but if you go I'm coming with you."

Rory shook her head, "No. We can't do that; I'll just-"

"Anyone awake?" A voice called as the front door opened, "You know you should really lock the door…it's not safe."

"Well those are words only Luke would say but that's not his voice…" Lorelai whispered but she smiled, "Oh hey Jess!"

"Seriously…it's not safe." Jess said shaking his head, "You should lock the door."

"Well since there is nothing left in the house to steal, I'm not to terribly worried about it." Her eyes fell on what was in Jess's hands, "You brought goodies!"

Jess nodded, "Gifts from Luke. And since he couldn't deliver them himself he sent me. Sorry if you are disappointed."

"While I would LOVE to see Luke…I smell coffee so I can't be disappointed. Although I have a feeling one of those cups has tea in it for me so I guess maybe I will be…" She said with a small pout.

Jess smirked, "Lucky for you, Luke seems to be in a really good mood this morning. He decided as long as you stick to one cup…you may have some coffee."

"What?" Lorelai said as her face erupted into a smile, "Is this a sick joke?"

Jess shook his head and handed her a cup, "Nope. See for yourself."

Lorelai snatched the cup from his hands and took a long gulp, ignoring how it burned her mouth. "Oh sweet elixir of life! I have missed you sweetie!"

"Wow…Luke really must love you if he is letting you have coffee today." Rory said with a chuckle, "But he better have sent one over for me to or I am objecting to this union."

Jess laughed and handed her the other cup, "Well we can't have that happen."

Rory's smile grew, "I knew there was a reason I loved Luke!"

"You know if I didn't know any better I'd think you guys were only interested in Luke for the coffee…" Jess said shaking his head.

"And don't forget the free food!" Lorelai said with a smile, "That's pretty awesome too. Not to mention the fact that he's a total stud."

Rory grimaced, "Oh God no…please don't start talking about how sexy he is again! I just erased the mental image of him naked in my shower out of my head!"

Jess groaned, "Oh gross! I don't want to think about that!"

Lorelai smirked, "Well how do you think this baby was made?" She said rubbing a hand on her belly, "I can promise you that it wasn't Immaculate Conception!"

"Alright…I gotta get out of here if you are going to start talking about that crap." Jess said quickly as he thrust his hands towards her, "This is the rest of your stuff. Enjoy. See you guys at the wedding."

"You can't just leave me with her!" Rory said with a pout, "She'll drive my crazy until then."

Jess shrugged and looked at his watch, "Until four this afternoon she isn't related to me which means I don't have to actually stay and listen to her. You are her daughter so you don't have a choice. Good luck!"

"Ugh! You suck!" Rory said glaring back at him.

"Careful Gilmore…I'll take back the coffee…" He teased reaching for it.

Rory held it closer to her, "Don't even think about it!"

Jess chuckled and then left the house to leave the girls to their gifts. Lorelai took her coffee, the bag of food and the gift box into the living room and sat back down on the bed. She took out the muffins and handed one to Rory who sat down beside her and watched her intently.

"So what's in the box?" Rory asked taking a bite of her muffin.

Lorelai put her coffee down on the floor and then flipped open the top of the box and gasped when she saw what was inside of it." Oh my goodness…"

"Wow…" Rory said glancing down at the two dangling sapphire earrings. "Those are beautiful…"

Lorelai wiped a tear from her eyes, "They are stunning…"

"Read the note…" Rory said nudging her mother's leg as she took the jewelry box from her hands.

Lorelai reached towards the discarded tray that held the coffee and retrieved the note in Luke's handwriting and read it out loud.

"_Good morning crazy lady. I listened to your voicemail…and I want you to know that I love you too. I hope you enjoy the coffee because it's the last cup you are having until after our baby is born! I shouldn't even be giving it to you now…but knowing you…you probably got up really early. You always do when you are excited or anxious about things. And if you got up…you more than likely woke up Rory too. I figured you'd both need something to get you through the day. I don't need you falling asleep at the alter…I want you awake and alert so you don't miss a second. I hope you like the earrings…I was going to wait until after the ceremony to give them to you but April saw them and reminded me you still needed something blue and something new. I saw these at the store the other day and they reminded me of your eyes…I wanted you to have them. I know they will look beautiful on you…everything always does. I love you Lorelai Victoria Gilmore…and I can't wait to be your husband. I'll see you at the alter."_

"I always knew Luke was an old softie…" Rory said as she watched tears stream down her mothers face.

Lorelai took a shaky breath, "God I love him…"

"I know…" Rory said giving her knee a squeeze, "This is gonna be good Mom. Really good…for all of us."

Lorelai smiled at her daughter, "I know. I just wish I could have given you this real family earlier…"

Rory shook her head, "Luke's always been like a Dad to me. This just makes it official. You gave me the most amazing childhood Mom…I wouldn't change anything about it." She wiped at her mothers tears, "No more crying…I'm sure we will both be crying a river later on today. Grandma will be here soon so we better take our showers now."

"You go first…" Lorelai said smiling at her, "I just need a minute…"

Rory nodded and quickly took her coffee and muffin and then went upstairs towards the bathroom. Lorelai lay back on the mattress and held the earrings up in front of her. They dangled back and forth and the sun made the blue sapphires sparkle through the whole room.

Her heart skipped a beat as she thought about the amazing man that had given them to her. And she just hoped that time would speed up so she could finally be his wife.

* * *

By 3, Lorelai, Rory, Liz, April, Sookie and Emily were all in the bridal suite at the Inn. They were getting their hair and make up done and gossiping about the different guests and guessing at what everyone would wear. Lorelai was sitting in the biggest chair there with a robe that said "Bride" on the back when Michel walked in with a bouquet of flowers in his hands.

"I know you picked out flowers…" He whispered, "But Luke insisted that you carry these…"

Lorelai's face lit up when she saw them, they looked like the same flowers he had given her on the day of the test run. The very same day that their relationship had started.

"They are beautiful…" Lorelai said as he handed them to her, "Have you seen him?"

"Yes. He's upstairs with the groomsmen." Michel said smiling at her.

"Does he look handsome?" Lorelai asked with a giddy smile, and then shook her head, "What a stupid question. He always looks handsome!"

Michel shrugged, "I will say he cleans up rather nicely when he takes off that foolish baseball cap and ugly flannel. Hasn't anyone told him that flannel was so 1990s?"

"I like his flannel and I LOVE his baseball cap." Lorelai said as she inhaled the sweet scent of the flowers.

"Mom gave him the hat years ago…" Rory said with a smile as the hairdresser finished curling her hair. "It was the first real gift she ever gave him."

"Yes well…he better not wear it during the ceremony." Emily said with a scowl, "While I have grown to love him I will not accept that during the wedding."

Lorelai laughed, "He won't wear it at the ceremony Mom…I promise. However tonight when we're alone I may bring it out…" She said with a twinkle in her eyes.

Rory groaned, "God seriously Mom…stop talking about your sex life! I can't take anymore of it!"

"I'm sorry! It's the hormones." Lorelai said with a chuckle, "I can't help myself."

"I remember when I was pregnant with Doula, I couldn't keep my hands off of TJ." Liz said nodding in understanding, "I really tired him out."

"Lucky for me your brother is very healthy and has amazing stamina. So far he's keeping up very well." She said with a smirk.

"La la la la la!" April said as she threw her hands over her ears, "I'm with Rory on this one! I don't want to hear about this!"

"I will admit that when I was pregnant with you Lorelai I had a larger sexual appetite as well." Emily said as she sipped her mimosa, "Your father didn't know what to do with me!"

"Oh GROSS!" Lorelai said making a gagging noise, "Mom I don't want to think about that!"

"See! Now you know how we feel?" Rory said gesturing between her and April. "Can we cool it with the hormonal talk please?"

Lorelai gagged again, "Fine…but someone say something else to distract me from the image of my parents doing it."

"What if I told you that its only one hour until wedding time?" Sookie asked, "Would that help? In one hour from now you will finally be a Mrs."

Lorelai's face lit up, "That definitely helps…" The room got quiet for a minute as they all let it sink in before Lorelai kicked her feet excitedly. "I'm getting married!"

The room cheered together excitedly and quickly went back to getting ready for the fast approaching ceremony.

* * *

Upstairs, Luke was pacing nervously in the room he and the groomsmen were given. Jess watched him with amusement as he finished shaving in the bathroom and Luke's friends Mike and John were taking bets on when his freak out would happen.

TJ walked back into the room and angrily tried to stretch his legs, "I still think you should have gone with a renaissance themed wedding Luke. I mean the air pants were so much more comfortable than this tux."

"For the hundredth million time…no self-respecting man would wear tights TJ! Especially not to their own damn wedding." Luke said as he continued to pace.

"Right on schedule…" Mike muttered, "Cough up the dough Johnny boy…operation Luke freak out is underway."

"Damn it Luke…I thought you had at least ten more minutes in you." John said as he pulled out his wallet and handed Mike fifty bucks.

"I'm not freaking out." Luke said whipping his head over towards his buddies. "This is not me freaking out."

TJ glared at him, "You look like you are freaking out man…that creepy vein is starting to pop out of your forehead. I'm telling you air pants would have helped in this situation. There would have been better air circulation for you to be able to breath a little better…"

"TJ…stop talking about freaking air pants before I strangle you." Luke said stopping his pacing as he glared back at him.

John hollered excitedly, "Alright! Butch is gonna beat someone up! Just like the good old days…"

Luke turned towards him, "I'm not gonna beat someone up and I'm not going to wear any damn air pants just like I'm not freaking out!"

"Okay there Uncle Luke…" Jess said walking into the room, "Why don't we go for a walk?" He asked clapping a hand on his back.

"I don't need to go for a stupid walk." Luke muttered as he tried to brush off his hand.

"I think some fresh air might be good for you…" Jess said softly.

"He could have had fresh air in his lower regions if he had worn the air pants!" TJ said pointing a finger at him.

"TJ I swear to God I'm gonna-" Luke started as he tried to lunge towards his brother in law.

Jess quickly grabbed him and steered him towards the door before walking with him down the hall and down the stairs before the slipped out the back door. Luke continued to mutter obscenities under his breath as Jess walked him towards where the ceremony would take place in under an hour.

"You want to tell me what you are freaking out about? I thought you told me you weren't having cold feet?" Jess asked as they came to a stop under a nearby tree.

Luke sighed, "I don't have cold feet…I want to marry Lorelai. That's not why I'm all worked up."

"Then what's the problem?" Jess asked as he folded his arms over his chest, "Something obviously bothering you…and not that you and I like to talk about our feelings or anything," He paused and shrugged, "But I feel like we should probably do that before Lorelai walks down the aisle…she may kill you if you back out now."

Luke shook his head, "I don't want to back out."

"So what's the deal?" Jess asked, "You love Lorelai…that's obvious. And she loves you…"

Luke nodded slowly and looked back at the Inn, "Yeah. I do love her…I don't know I was so ready and I am ready for this. I guess I'm just worried that I'm not enough for her. I know she says this is good enough…but sometimes I think she deserves so much more. I mean I know she deserves so much more…I just want to make sure she's happy. I don't want her to ever regret me."

Jess shook his head; "Uncle Luke…Lorelai made her choice a long time ago. She wants you…you're the only guy that's ever actually made her happy."

Luke nodded again, "Yeah I know that but I still worry that one day she's gonna wake up and think…why the hell am I still stuck here?"

"No one can predict the future but I really doubt that will happen. This has been a long time coming Uncle Luke…she wants to be with you. Lorelai's been through a lot of crap in her life and now she's finally happy and safe. She doesn't want anyone else…this is happening. You're going to get married today and then in a couple of months you're gonna have a kid…this is your life Uncle Luke. And if you can give me any logical reason why you shouldn't go through with this today I'll let you back out. But other wise I'm making you do this. I'm not gonna let you do something you'll regret. You said your self the two biggest regrets in your life were not telling her how you felt for eight years and then letting her walk away last time…don't ruin it again." Jess said shaking his head.

Luke took a deep breath, "Wow…for a guy who doesn't like to talk much you really just calmed me down a lot. I picked right for my best man."

Jess laughed, "Does this mean I don't have to worry about Rory killing me for letting you leave?"

Luke laughed, "No. I'm not going anywhere…I never really was. I just…I just needed a reminder that she wanted this too."

Jess smiled, "She does. They both do. This is good Uncle Luke…really good."

He nodded once and looked towards the chairs and chuppah, "Yeah. It is…"

"Okay then…lets get back upstairs. We need to finish getting ready. Ceremony starts in forty minutes." Jess said clapping a hand on his back again and leading him back towards the Inn.

Luke followed him and nodded before speaking again, "Just do me a favor and keep TJ away from me will ya? He's driving me nuts…"

Jess laughed, "I'll do my best…"

Luke smiled at him as they walked up the back stairs and back towards their room upstairs. In forty minutes Lorelai Gilmore would officially be his wife…and it was about damn time!

* * *

Five minutes before the ceremony, Lorelai was standing in front of a full-length mirror staring at herself. Her dress still fit which she considered to be a miracle since there was a tiny bump present through the dress. For the people who didn't know about it yet, they were sure to know about it by the end of the day. Not that it mattered, she was so proud to be carrying Luke's baby and couldn't wait to meet him or her.

She pulled at her perfectly curled locks to make sure not a strand was out of place. She knew Luke would want her to wear her hair down, he often told her that though he always found her beautiful he preferred her hair down and curly. She lifted her chin to make sure her make up hadn't smudged when she began to cry a few minutes earlier. In the middle of her wandering thoughts, she felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked in the mirror to see her daughter staring back at her.

"Hey…how are you doing?" Rory asked giving her shoulder a slight squeeze, "It's almost show time…"

Lorelai took a deep breath and put a hand over her heart, "A little nervous…"

Rory smiled, "You shouldn't be…you know this is right."

Lorelai smiled back and smoothed out her dress, "I know. I guess I've just been waiting so long for this moment…now that it's finally here it feels a bit overwhelming."

Rory smiled, "This is exactly where you are supposed to be…"

Lorelai stared at her daughter for a moment, "I can't believe you are leaving me tomorrow…how did you get so grown up?"

Rory shook her head quickly, "We said we weren't going to talk about that. We can't afford to cry anymore than we already will. And…today is your day, not mine."

Lorelai nodded slowly, "I just love you kid…"

Rory whimpered and threw her arms around her mothers neck, "I love you to Mom. So much."

Lorelai squeezed her back and tried to hold back the tears, "I don't' know why I even bothered to put any make up on. It's going to be washed away in minutes at this rate."

Rory giggled and pulled back, "Then let's get the show on the road…"

Emily and Richard walked into the room and stared at the two girls, "All ready?" Emily asked.

Lorelai took a deep breath and looked at her self one more time; "I think so yes…"

"You look beautiful…" Emily said reaching over to cup her daughters face in her hands, "The perfect bride…"

Lorelai smiled, "Thanks Mom…"

She smiled again, "The music is starting…we should get out there Rory."

Rory nodded and looked back at her Mom, "See you at the alter Mom." She kissed her cheek quickly and then linked arms with her grandmother before they walked out of the room.

Richard stood quietly in the corner of the bridal suite admiring his daughter from afar. He watched her primp her hair once more and pull at her dress before she reached to the table nearby and picked up her bouquet of flowers.

She turned slowly and looked at him, "Ready Dad?" He didn't respond, only stared at her in awe and she felt the blush grow in her cheeks. "Dad? Are you alright?"

Richard cleared his throat and whispered, "I'm just very proud of you Lorelai…"

She felt the tears burning in her eyes again and she took a shaky breath, "Dad…"

"To see you standing here…happy and in love. You're successful with your business that you worked so hard for…you're an amazing mother." He shook his head, "You're stronger than anyone I know…and I am proud to call you my daughter."

She looked down slowly and nodded, "Dad you're going to make me cry…"

He smiled sadly and walked closer to her, "I'm not meaning too…I guess I'm just wondering when the hell you grew up so fast."

Lorelai laughed through her tears as she lifted her head, "I'm a lot older than most brides Dad. So if you are still wondering that now we would have to go back about thirty years to when I was a kid…"

Richard chuckled, "It doesn't matter how old you are Lorelai…" He leaned forward and kissed her forehead gently. "You will always be my little girl…"

Unable to hold the tears back anymore, she quickly reached for him and wrapped her small arms around his large, strong shoulders. "I love you Daddy…"

Richard felt the lump grow in his throat, the last time she had said that she was a very small girl…All the years seemed to flash before his eyes. Both the good and bad, and he mourned the time he missed with her but treasured the time he did spend with her. He held her tightly and whispered against her head, "I love you too Lorelai…"

He felt her nod her head once and then pull away slowly, "Okay…Okay we need to get out there before my face melts off."

Richard chuckled, "You do know how to ruin a perfectly good moment…"

Lorelai laughed, "Dad if you let me keep crying we'll be here for another eight months…"

He smiled, "Alright. Lets go get you married…"

She beamed up at him and linked her arm with his, together they walked out of the room. They went down the hall, out the back staircase and were just in time to see Rory start to walk down the aisle, the last of the bridesmaids. Lorelai's heart felt like it would burst out of her chest, but she felt her Dad give her an affectionate squeeze and she knew things would be okay.

At the end of the aisle, Luke was looking down; he didn't want to see Lorelai until she started walking towards him. Jess smirked when he got a first glimpse of her, "Wait till you see her…" He whispered to Luke.

Luke's eyes fluttered open nervously and his breath caught in his throat as he saw her walking towards him on Richard's arm. Her dress fit her perfectly, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw the small bump beginning to show. The love of his life and his child were walking towards him…he was about to get everything he had ever wanted. And instead of being completely terrified or unsure, he had never felt more relaxed and ready in his life.

Lorelai felt like she was floating, she couldn't feel her feet on the grass below her feet. Her eyes were glued to Luke and she felt so overwhelmed by how handsome he looked. His smile seemed to grow with each step she took towards him and her heart felt like it was going to explode. She was faintly aware of her friends and family watching from their seats but she never turned to look at them. She only had eyes for one man…Luke Danes.

When they finally reached the end of the aisle, she reminded herself to breath as Richard kissed her cheek, shook Luke's hand and then stepped aside. Her hands were shaking when Luke reached for her but they stilled when he gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"You look stunning…" He whispered in a hoarse voice, his blue eyes looked like they were full of unshed tears.

"You don't look so bad yourself mister…" She whispered back in a soft voice.

He winked at her, and then turned towards Archie to begin the ceremony. They listened to him talk about love, and how it was the greatest gift anyone could receive. When they stole glances at each other, they had to turn away quickly to keep from smiling too much or leaning forward to kiss each other.

But finally Archie let them know it was time to say their vows, "And now its time for what I think this whole town has been waiting for…" Everyone laughed and he smirked at Luke and Lorelai, "Could you face each other please?"

Rory helped Lorelai readjust her dress before taking her bouquet and giving her a happy smile. Lorelai then turned back towards Luke who beamed over at her as they locked hands and waited for their cue.

"Luke…if you will repeat after me please." He smiled at his long time friend, "I Lucas William Danes…take you Lorelai Victoria Gilmore to be my wife…"

"I Lucas William Danes…take thee Lorelai Victoria Gilmore to be my wife…" He said in a strong and clear voice.

"To have and to hold from this day forward…" Archie continued.

"To have and to hold from this day forward…" His voice was still clear but it cracked with emotion in the end.

"For better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health…" He whispered encouragingly.

He took a deep breath and tried to keep it together, "For better or worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health…"

"And to love and cherish…until death do us part." Archie finished.

He couldn't hide the emotion in his voice any longer and ignored the cracking in his voice, "And to love and cherish…until death do us part."

Lorelai beamed up at him as Archie turned to her, "And now Lorelai…repeat after me." He cleared his throat and spoke again, "I Lorelai Victoria Gilmore…take you Lucas William Danes to be my husband…"

She took a deep breath and squeezed Luke's hands before speaking, "I Lorelai Victoria Gilmore…take you Lucas William Danes…to finally be my husband!" She said with excitement making everyone in the audience and Luke laugh. "Sorry…" She mumbled to Archie.

Archie laughed, "I think we all feel that way Lorelai. It's alright. But lets continue." He cleared his throat again, "To have and to hold from this day forward…"

"To have and to hold from this day forward…" She spoke and made sure to never take her eyes off of him.

"For better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health…" He continued.

Her confidence faltered slightly due to her emotion and she sniffled slightly, "For better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health…"

"And to love and cherish…until death do us apart." Archie finished for her.

She took another shaky breath and whispered softly, "And to love and cherish until death do us part…"

"If we could have the rings please?" Archie asked turning towards Jess.

Jess reached into his pocket and took out the rings before handing them to his Uncle. Luke smiled at him and then turned back to Lorelai and took her hand, waiting for Archie to tell him hat to do next.

"Now Lucas, place the ring on Lorelai's finger and repeat after me…With this ring I thee wed…" Archie said.

Luke glanced up at Lorelai who had tears in her eyes and he slid the ring onto her finger, "With this ring…I thee wed."

Lorelai's smile grew and she dangled her finger letting the light play off the two bands there. She then took Luke's ring from Jess's hands and turned back towards her almost husband.

"Lorelai place the ring on Luke's finger and say, with this ring, I thee wed." Archie said to her.

Lorelai slid the ring onto his finger and smiled up at him, "With this ring…I thee wed."

Archie smiled at them, "Then by the power vested in me by the state of Connecticut…I now pronounce you…husband and wife." Lorelai and Luke locked eyes and he chuckled when he saw Lorelai try to keep from squealing. "You may now kiss your bride Luke…"

Luke didn't have to be told twice, he pulled Lorelai flush up against him and pressed his lips against hers. Their guests erupted in applause and cheers towards the newlyweds. When the music began to play again, they turned towards their friends and family, linked arms and walked together down the aisle.

When they walked back towards the Inn, Lorelai led Luke towards her office to give them a moment of privacy. Luke quickly shut the door behind them, drowning out the sounds of their friends and family.

He quickly crossed the room in two steps and cupped her face, "You're my wife…"

Lorelai beamed up at him as she held his strong forearms in her small hands, "You're my husband…"

"God I love you…" He mumbled as he pulled her closer and crushed his lips against hers, "You are incredible…you look incredible. You look perfect." Luke said against her lips as he rained kisses over her face.

She giggled, "Luke…"

"I just...I can't believe we are finally married." He said pulling back to look at her, "I can't believe this…"

"Need me to pinch you?" She asked in a seductive voice, "Cuz you aren't dreaming…" She whispered as she reached back to pinch his butt.

"Lorelai!" He said trying to sound angrily but failing miserably as he started to laugh, "Not here…"

She pouted, "I wish you could take my upstairs right now…"

He groaned, "Don't tempt me…" He mumbled as he pulled her in for another kiss. "I'd throw you over my shoulder and drag you to room seven if I could…"

"Why room seven?" She asked as his lips licked and nipped at her neck.

"That's the room I slept in during the test run…" He smirked against her lips, "And after our first kiss…I had very dirty dreams about you up there."

She sighed happily and leaned against her desk, "Oh God…tell me about them…"

He groaned and pulled away from her, "If I wasn't worried about TJ busting through the door talking about air pants I would…trust me."

She giggled and leaned her forehead against his; "I guess we'll just have to wait to consummate this marriage until later…"

He sighed and nodded slowly, "I guess so…"

"Think you can handle dancing with me once or twice tonight?" She asked as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

He smiled and kissed her softly, "You got it…"

A quiet knock on the door made them pull apart and they smiled when they saw Rory and Jess on the other side, "The natives are getting restless…" Rory said.

"Which is her way of saying Kirk already tripped and fell into the rose bushes." Jess said with a shrug.

Lorelai and Luke laughed as she wrapped an arm around Luke's waist, "How did that happen?"

"He was crying so hard after the ceremony he couldn't see where he was going." Rory said rolling her eyes.

"Well at least he has pants on this time…" Luke said with a shake of his head as he laughed.

"He just took of his suit jacket…so it's only a matter of time before the rest of his clothes follow." Jess said with a grimace.

"Just don't give him any alcohol and we should be fine…" Lorelai said pulling Luke towards the door. "Come on. You promised me a dance mister."

"Yes dear…" He said pretending to groan as she pulled him out of the room.

They walked towards the backyard again where the reception was set up. Their friends cheered for them as they made their way onto the dance floor and Luke wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Oh no! We never picked a song…" Lorelai said with a frown, "We were so busy with everything else we forgot…"

Luke shook his head, "Don't worry…I told Lane what I wanted." He winked at Lane who smiled and put the record on.

"You picked the song?" Lorelai asked in disbelief, "Oh God it's not Jimmy Buffet or STYX is it?"

Luke rolled his eyes, "No. But I still will argue that Buffet is great…"

"What you say babe…just don't wear the flowery shirts around me okay?" She teased as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Yes dear…" He said with a chuckle again, he couldn't help but smile when he saw the smile on Lorelai's face grow when she began to recognize the song. "Did I do good?"

Lorelai felt the tears burning in her eyes again, "Oh Luke…it's the song we danced to at Liz and TJ's wedding…"

He nodded slowly, "I remember thinking you could never look more beautiful than you did that night…" He shook his head and reached up to tug at the flowers in her hair, "Boy was I wrong…"

She smiled up at him as they swayed to the music, "You like the flowers? They were Liz's idea…"

He smiled, "Remind me to thank her later…"

"I will…" She said pulling him closer, "Hey Luke?"

He smiled at her as he rubbed small circles against her hips, "Yes Lorelai?"

"I love you…" She whispered softly as she rested her forehead against his.

He smiled and took a deep breath, "Good. Because I love you too…"

They swayed together to the music and enjoyed the closeness of one another. It was as if they were the only people in the room while their song played. But when it ended they were brought back to reality. Lorelai shared a dance with Richard and Luke surprised Liz by pulling her out on the dance floor to dance with him as well.

Afterwards they went to take some pictures around the Inn's grounds. Lorelai even insisted they take a picture kissing in the doorway of the Inn just like they had on that first night together. When they were done and everyone was sitting down to eat, (Even Sookie who had tried but failed to sneak into the kitchen to test everything) they were interrupted by the sound of a fork against a champagne glass.

Lorelai and Luke tore themselves away from each other and looked towards Rory. She smiled at Luke and her Mom and nodded towards Jess who smiled back. Then she smoothed out her dress, took a sip of her champagne and turned towards the rest of the guests.

"I know usually the Best Man is the one who says a few words at the wedding…but Jess and I talked and agreed I would do it. Even though he's a brilliant writer…he prefers you all to think he's a mute." Everyone laughed and she looked back at him, "But I can assure you he is very articulate…" Jess smiled back at her and she winked before turning to her mother and Luke.

"Everyone here today knows that for most of my life it was always just me and my Mom…we were a team. Or at least that's what my Mom wanted me to believe." She smiled sadly, "But in reality my Mom was Superwoman…she took control of the show and gave me the greatest childhood any kid could ever ask for. She gave up everything to make sure that I was happy and healthy…the sacrifices she made no matter how big or small didn't matter to her as long as I was happy."

Lorelai felt Luke grab her hand and squeeze it gently as she felt the tears begin to burn in her eyes. He wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her closer to kiss the top of her head.

"When I was younger…I didn't really always understand or appreciate these sacrifices. But now that I am older can look back and understand just how much my Mom did for me. There were many years when we were on our own that Mom would go without food just to make sure that I was fed first." She smiled and looked over at Luke, "That was until Luke came into our lives…"

Luke blushed and now it was Lorelai's turn to give his hand an affectionate squeeze. He glanced at her and she leaned forward to kiss his cheek before turning back to her daughter.

"My Mom's famous line was that she had already eaten at work…she wasn't hungry." Rory said with a shake of her head, "And as a kid I didn't know how to make her eat…even if I heard her stomach rumbling. But Luke was a different story…" She smirked, "I remember about a month after we moved into our new house, Mom and I went to Luke's for dinner as usual. I was sitting up at the counter; my feet barely touched the ground already eating my chicken fingers and fries. Mom came bounding into the Diner after a long day at work and leaned over to kiss me on the cheek. She asked about my day, sat down beside me and smiled as she watched me eat my dinner. When Luke came out from the kitchen, he did his usual nod in her direction before grabbing his pad of paper and walking over to her, he cleared his throat and said in his best sarcastic and angry voice, 'Will it be your usual? Double cheeseburger, chili fries and a heart attack to go?'" Everyone laughed and Luke blushed against as Lorelai squeezed his hand again. "Mom pulled out her wallet, glanced inside and her cheeks immediately turned red…she shook her head, put the wallet back and smiled at Luke before saying, "I ate at the Inn thanks. Just Rory's dinner…"

Lorelai felt the tears falling down her face and she lifted a hand up to wipe them away. Luke rubbed her shoulders gently to remind her he was right beside her.

"He seemed to stare at her for a few minutes before he walked back towards the kitchen. Mom and I talked about our day, I'd offer her some food but she would refuse despite the fact that her eyes would wander over to my plate after every other word. And then about ten minutes later, Luke came back over and put down a plate in front of Mom with a cheeseburger and fries on it. He didn't even look at her but sighed when he realized she wasn't going to eat it without explanation. He looked up at her and shrugged before saying, 'I screwed up someone else's order. If you don't eat it it's going in the garbage so just eat it so I don't have to feel bad about the starving kids in Africa.'" Everyone laughed again and Rory smirked at Luke, "And that's when it started…that's when Luke began to take care of us. Even if Mom couldn't afford it he made sure we never went a day without our bellies full. Our porch railing was never lose, the gutters were always clean, he always cleaned our hair out of the drain God Bless him for that…" Everyone laughed again, "And he always gave us a safe place to find each other…each day ended with Mom and I sitting in the Diner gossiping and ranting about whatever major tragedy had happened that day. And Luke was always there to end the day with a piece of delicious pie sometimes with whipped cream on top to make all the bad stuff go away…"

Lorelai wrapped an arm around Luke's middle and leaned up to kiss his cheek. Luke smiled down at her with tears in his own eyes and she smiled, leaned up and wiped the tears away.

Rory took a deep breath, "So even though I often said that I didn't have a Dad growing up…" She swallowed the lump in her throat and whispered, "The truth is…Luke was always my Dad. Since the moment we walked into the Diner that day…he filled that void for me and I am so incredibly lucky."

The whole room was full of tears; Luke couldn't hide his own tears falling down his face. Lorelai didn't even attempt to wipe them away because she was to busy wiping her own tears away as her daughter continued.

"For the years that Mom couldn't always afford to pay for her meal…she made sure to leave more than necessary the next time. And what Mom doesn't know…and what I promised Luke I wouldn't tell her is that he stashed that money away." Rory said with a smirk as Luke's face turned red and Lorelai looked at him questioningly. "And after Luke moved me into my first year at Yale…and after he moved my mattress not once but twice…" Everyone laughed again, "He slipped an envelope in my backpack and told me to look after myself…"

"You didn't…" Lorelai said staring up at him in disbelief.

Luke shrugged shyly, "It wasn't a big deal…I just figured she could use it more than I could."

"Oh Luke…" Lorelai said softly as she leaned up to kiss him again.

Rory smiled, "So that extra money more than paid for my text books…and may or may not have contributed to a few underage drinking binges." Everyone laughed again and Rory continued, "But the point is…that when I left for school I was worried about Mom…for so many years she had been so busy taking care of me and now was the time she had to take care of herself. It wasn't that I didn't think she could do it…she was more than capable of it. I just knew she wouldn't…she feeds off of taking care of other people. It's what makes her happy…and when Luke gave me that envelope it reminded me that she wasn't going to be alone. She was far from alone…she had Luke. Our safety net…and he more than looked after her. He helped her make her dream of opening her own Inn possible…" She smirked, "And then he made her dream of finding true love possible as well…"

Luke looked down at Lorelai who seemed to be unable to take her eyes off of him. She leaned up and kissed him gently, as if to say thank you for all the things that her daughter was mentioning.

"Though their journey was anything but easy…I always hoped that this is where they would end up. I think everyone in this room was waiting for it…" Rory said looking around at the town that laughed and nodded in response. "And today even though I was sad to let go of that life I had with my Mom…I was more than happy to watch our family grow. Today I not only gained a father…" She whispered emotionally as she looked at Luke, "I gained a sister, "She said smiling over at April, "And in a few months…I'll have another sibling as well."

The rest of the town and their family and friends cheered in response and Lorelai and Luke kissed again.

Rory raised a glass, "So what I am trying to say is that I am so thankful for both my Mom and Luke. And I couldn't be happier for you guys. Although I am sad to leave tomorrow to start my new life in New York…I know that I always have somewhere safe and full of love to come back too. Thank you for giving me the greatest life possible. I love you both more than you could know. So I'd like everyone to raise their glass…" She said lifting hers higher, "To Lorelai and Luke…the two greatest people I know."

"To Lorelai and Luke…" Everyone said as they raised their glasses in response.

Luke helped Lorelai to her feet as everyone continued to cheer and Lorelai pulled her daughter into a tight embrace. "God…way to bring out the waterworks kid."

Rory smiled through her own tears and hugged her back, "Sorry Mom…"

Lorelai pulled away and shook her head, "Don't apologize…that was beautiful."

Luke smiled at her, "It was. Except you did promise to never tell her about the money…"

Rory shrugged, "You should know by now I have a big mouth. I get it from her." She said jerking her thumb towards her Mom.

Luke laughed and pulled her in for a hug before whispering in her ear, "I love you kid."

She smiled and hugged him back, "I love you too Luke. Thank you for making my Mom so happy."

He smiled and pulled away from her, "Want to dance?"

Rory smiled, "I'd love too…" She turned towards her Mom, "Think you'll be okay for a few minutes?"

Lorelai smiled, "I think I can find someone to entertain me…"

Luke and Rory smiled at her and then walked together towards the dance floor. Lorelai watched them go happily and was soon joined by more friends who wanted to congratulate her.

* * *

Much later that night, Lorelai and Luke were sitting on the porch of the Dragonfly while their friends and family splintered off to their rooms. Lorelai was curled up beside Luke on the porch swing, resting her head on his shoulder.

"You sleepy?" Luke asked as he rubbed her back, "It's been a busy day…you and the munchkin must be ready to go to bed."

Lorelai snuggled into him more, "I'm wide awake babe. I don't want to miss a moment…I think that coffee of yours this morning was extra strong and extra good."

Luke chuckled, "Good. Because it has to hold you over until the baby comes."

Lorelai smiled and put a hand on her stomach, "I had a dream again that it was a girl…"

Luke smiled and ran a hand through her hair, "Oh yeah?"

She nodded against his shoulder, "Would that be okay? If it was a girl I mean…?"

He looked down at her, "Lorelai I don't care what it is…as long as it's healthy…that's all that's important."

She smiled, "Good…" She looked around the yard, "Think we can say goodnight to everyone and head up to the bridal suite?"

Luke nodded once, "Well…we can say goodnight to everyone but we aren't sleeping there tonight."

She frowned, "We're not? But all my stuff is up there…"

He smiled, "Rory and April are going to sleep there tonight. We have somewhere else to be…"

"Where?" Lorelai asked as he pulled her up to her feet.

"Don't worry…" He said as he took her hand and led her towards Rory and April, "We're not camping out anywhere…"

Lorelai sighed with relief; "Good…you scared me there for a minute."

He chuckled as Rory and April came to meet them, "You guys headed out?" Rory asked.

Lorelai frowned again, "Yes…but I wish I knew where we were going."

April smiled, "Don't worry…Dad's got a few good surprises still up his sleeve. You wont' be disappointed."

Luke smiled and pulled her closer to him, "You two will be alright tonight?"

April nodded, "Yup. Jess will be around too, don't worry about us. We'll be just fine."

"But we'll see you in the morning before you both head out right?" Lorelai asked as she pulled her daughter close.

"We aren't going anywhere until we see you both…" Rory said wrapping an arm around her, "I don't have to rush and April's flight isn't until later in the afternoon. We'll have plenty of time for goodbyes. Don't worry about it now…"

Lorelai sighed and pulled her in for a kiss on the cheek, "I love you kid…thank you for everything today."

"I love you too Mom." Rory said holding her back, "Congratulations."

Luke hugged April, "You behave yourself tonight…"

April laughed, "I will Dad...but you better too. We wouldn't want Lorelai to change her mind by the morning…"

They all laughed and Lorelai shook her head, "Not possible…"

"Goodnight you guys…" Luke said as he hugged Rory and Lorelai hugged April.

They watched them walk back towards the Inn and then Luke took Lorelai's hand in his again. He began to pull her away from the Inn and she once again frowned at him confused about where they were headed.

"Luke seriously…where are we going?" She asked as he pulled her along.

"You'll see…" He smirked as he pulled a blindfold from his pocket, "Eventually…"

"Luke Danes…" She said as her eyes widened in shock, "Kinky boy…"

He chuckled and then pulled her towards his truck, "Get in will ya? You'll know where we are soon enough."

Lorelai squeezed his hand and let him push her up into the truck. Luke couldn't help but giggle as he got in the driver side and saw her practically bouncing in her seat. He started the truck and drove towards their destination quickly. When they got there, Luke parked the car, got out and walked over to her side of the car and opened the door for her.

He took her hand, and led her down the path towards her last surprise of the day. She listened to him instruct her of when to step up and step down. Her heart was pounding in her chest as they began to slow down signaling to her they were almost there.

She felt him move around behind her and heard him open a door before whispering in her ear, "You ready?"

She nodded, "Yes. But I told you before…I'm not afraid of it anymore."

He couldn't help but chuckle, "Lorelai…can you be serious just for a moment please?"

She smiled and took a deep breath, "Okay. Sorry. I'm ready."

He nodded once and then leaned up to untie the blindfold from her eyes, "Welcome home Lorelai…"

Lorelai gasped as she put a hand to her lips, "Luke…I don't…how did you…when did you?"

He smiled and watched her eyes look over their finished bedroom that was glowing in candlelight. "Well The house is finished…we just needed to move the furniture in. So I called in a few favors to see if our room could be ready tonight…and Patty and Babette came by a few minutes before us to light the candles."

She turned towards him and raised an eyebrow, "You sure they left? Knowing them they may be hiding in the closet trying to tape us…"

Luke chuckled, "They pulled down the driveway just as I was pulling in."

She smiled and looked around, "It's perfect…" She stepped forward to walk into the room but Luke reached out to stop her, "Are we just going to stare at it?"

Luke smiled and shook his head, "No…but you can't just walk in." He bent down and swept her up into his arms making her giggle. "I have to carry you over the threshold…"

"My husband is so big and strong…" She whispered as she squeezed him closer.

He chuckled and walked her into the room, "You're ruining the moment dear…"

She smiled as he placed her down on the floor beside the bed, she turned and glanced at the finished headboard he had made. "Oh Luke…"

He smiled, "You like it? I made sure to finish it early so I could stain it early enough. I didn't want the smell to bother you…not good for the baby."

"Always looking out for me…" She said leaning forward to caress his face. "My doting husband…"

He smiled at her sheepishly, "If you wanted to stay at the Inn we can go back if you want…"

She shook her head, "No. No this is absolutely perfect. Better than I could have ever imagined…"

Luke nodded slowly and walked closer to her, "I can't believe we're actually here…"

Tears welled up in her eyes as she gazed at him through the candle light, "Neither can I…"

He reached up and pulled at the flowers in her hair, "Have I told you today how beautiful you are?"

"You may have mentioned it a few thousand times…" She said batting her eyelashes, "But I wouldn't protest to hearing it again…"

He smiled and pulled her closer and kissed her gently, "You are beautiful Lorelai Gilmore."

She shook her head, "Lorelai Danes… "

The smile on his face grew even wider, "Lorelai Danes…"

She smiled and leaned up to kiss him, "I like the sound of that…"

"Me too…" He whispered as their lips met in a kiss, when he pulled away she turned her back to him smiling over her shoulder affectionately. "Lorelai…"

She smiled, "Take it off…"

He nodded slowly and tried to keep his hands from shaking as he began to pull at the buttons on the back of her dress. Then he slid the straps down her shoulders and pushed it down all the way. He helped her step out of it carefully and admired the silky slip that was underneath it.

She turned towards him and began to pull at his tie as he pushed his suit jacket off. When he was down to his boxers, he lifted her up again and lay her down on their bed. She smiled up at him as he lay over her and she leaned up to pull at the hairs at the back of his neck affectionately.

"Hey husband…" She whispered softly.

He smiled down at her, "Hey wife…"

She traced the lines on his face and smiled gently, "Rory was right you know…"

He furrowed his brow, "About what?"

"You have kept us safe for so long…" She whispered with a lump in her throat, "I always knew I could lean on you if I needed you. I always knew you'd catch me…since the day I walked into the Diner you've been there for me."

He smiled, "I didn't stand a chance Lorelai…since the day you walked into the Diner I've been yours. I'd do anything for you…anything you ever need or want I'll give you. You and our baby…" He whispered as he leaned down to kiss her stomach. "Anything ever…"

Her eyes welled up with tears, "God I love you…"

Lifting his head he looked back up at her and whispered, "I love you too…"

"Come up here…" She whispered to him as she wiped at her tears, she pulled him up towards her and let his lips crash against hers.

Together they lay in the glow of the candles in their very own bed for the first night as husband and wife. And as he made love to her Lorelai felt the pain and worries of everything that had happened just a few months before slip away. Nothing else mattered now…no one would come between them ever again. They had FINALLY sealed the deal…they were husband and wife.

Now the real fun could begin… 

* * *

**So what did you think? I hope you liked it :) I think I set it up well for a sequel just in case. I hope you enjoyed reading the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks for all your support! **


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